Intracellular lipid droplets in functioning transitional parathyroid oxyphil adenomas. A caveat.
Histochemical demonstration of intracellular lipid droplets on frozen section has been used to distinguish normal parathyroid tissue from that of adenoma and chief cell hyperplasia. Differentiation is based on the observation that the cells of adenoma and chief-cell hyperplasia largely lack intracellular lipid, which is present in the suppressed chief cells of normal glands in patients with adenoma. We present two functional transitional oxyphil adenomas that contained abundant intracellular lipid. Failure to recognize that transitional oxyphilic adenomas may contain focal accumulation of intracellular lipid droplets could lead to confusion in histologic interpretation.
Alpern
H D
HD
Department of Pathology, Mary Imogene Bassett Hospital, Cooperstown, NY.
Roth
S I
SI
Olson
J E
JE
D000236:Adenoma / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D000368:Aged; D005260:Female; D006651:Histocytochemistry; D006801:Humans; D050356:Lipid Metabolism; D010280:Parathyroid Glands / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D010282:Parathyroid Neoplasms / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D013194:Staining and Labeling / Q000379:methods