Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Cat with liver masses diagnosed with AA amyloidosis in macrophages
By Neo-Suzuki, Sakurako et al.·Published in Veterinary clinical pathology·2017·School of Veterinary Medicine, Japan·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Hepatic AA amyloidosis in a cat: cytologic and histologic identification of AA amyloid in macrophages.
- Species:
- cat
Plain-English summary
A 3-year-old spayed female Domestic Shorthair cat was brought to the vet because she was not eating, seemed very tired, and was vomiting. The vet found that she had signs of liver problems, including swollen liver and masses on the liver. Tests showed she had amyloidosis, a condition where abnormal protein builds up in organs, which was confirmed through special staining techniques on liver samples. The cat's treatment plan would likely focus on managing her symptoms and any underlying issues related to the amyloidosis.
People also search for: cat vomiting and lethargy · cat liver problems · amyloidosis in cats · cat anorexia treatment
Abstract
A 3-year-old, spayed female, Domestic Shorthair cat presented with anorexia, lethargy, vomiting, probable hemoabdomen, and multiple masses on the right lateral liver lobe. Clinicopathologic and imaging abnormalities included anemia, azotemia, icterus, and hepatomegaly with hypoechoic masses. On cytologic evaluation of a fine-needle aspiration of a liver mass there was abundant extracellular pink- to purple-colored material between hepatocytes. The amorphous material was stained with direct fast scarlet (DFS), and green birefringent areas were observed under polarized light, confirming the presence of amyloid. A unique finding on the cytologic smear were macrophages containing amorphous and fibrillar amyloid-like protein. Histopathologic examination using H&E and Congo red staining confirmed amyloid deposits within the space of Disse, along the sinusoids, portal tracts, blood vessel walls, and within the cytoplasm of macrophages. Immunohistochemical staining with anti-AA amyloid antibodies further confirmed the presence of AA amyloid. To the author's knowledge, this is the first report of the cytologic finding of AA amyloid protein within macrophages and DFS stain detection of amyloid on a cytologic smear.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28519899/