Fine-needle aspiration cytology of non-neoplastic adrenal pathology.

BACKGROUND The incidence of many fungal and parasitic lesions are on the rise over the last few decades. In this study, we have analyzed the spectrum of non-malignant lesions in adrenal gland diagnosed on fine-needle aspiration biopsy (FNAB) in a tertiary health care center. METHODS FNAB of the adrenal gland was done under CT (4 cases) and ultrasound guidance (11 cases). In six cases, the lesions were present in both the adrenal glands. Special stains were done whenever needed. No complications were encountered in any of the FNAB procedure. Detailed cytomorphological study was done along with clinical history. RESULTS There were total of 15 cases comprising of 5 tuberculosis, 5 Histoplasma, 2 acute inflammation, 2 granulomatous inflammation, and 1 myelolipoma. Acid fast bacilli positive on Ziehl Neelsen stain were labeled as mycobacterial infection possibly tuberculosis. The capsule of Histoplasma was bright pink on Periodic Acid Schiff stain. CONCLUSIONS FNAB is an easy, reliable, and minimally invasive method to diagnose and categorize the various benign non-neoplastic diseases of adrenal gland. Diagn. Cytopathol. 2016;44:472-476. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.