Adenomatous Cholecystitis in Cattle with Chronic Fascioliasis

Abstract

Gall bladders from 80 mature cattle infested with liver flukes were shrunken; their walls were thickened; and mucosa was raised into rugose folds, nodules and papillary projections. All contained thick bile and mature liver flukes, predominantly Fasciola gigantica and to a lesser extent Fasciola hepatica. There was an adenomatous proliferation of the lining epithelium as well as of submucosal glands forming numerous tubuloalveolar structures and cysts lined with a uniform layer of columnar epithelium. Fibrous stroma was more than normal, and there was a mild to heavy infiltration by inflammatory cells. Some bladders had many enterochromaffin cells in the epithelium lining the glandular structures. Mitotic figures were rare, and there was no evidence of malignancy. The condition is inflammatory and hyperplastic and is believed to be common in cattle infested with liver fluke. The clinical effects of this condition have not been studied.