title: A case of diffuse neuronal hypertrophy in acute appendicitis.
abstract: We report a case of neuronal hypertrophy associated with acute appendicitis in which significant neuronal fibers and the number of ganglion cells increased in the absence of inflammatory cells. Differential diagnosis from diffuse ganglioneuromatosis by the pathologic findings of resected specimen was difficult. A 33-year-old Japanese female visited our hospital complaining of acute abdominal pain. The patient underwent appendectomy upon the diagnosis of acute appendicitis on the day of admission. Postoperative examinations found no neoplastic lesions in other organs or inherited disorders such as multiple endocrine neoplasia (MEN) type 2b and von Recklinghausen's disease (VRD). The pathologic diagnosis was neuronal hypertrophy of the appendix. Because the clinical outcomes of diffuse ganglioneuromatosis and neuronal hypertrophy of the gastrointestinal tract are quite different, clinical and pathologic examination should be carefully carried out for lesions in which significant proliferation of neuronal components is seen.
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, Social Insurance Gunma Chuo General Hospital, Gunma, Japan. m07702048@gunma-u.ac.jp
authors.forename: Hayato
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Yamauchi
authors.forename: Shinji
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sakurai
authors.forename: Ritsuko
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Tsukagoshi
authors.forename: Masaki
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Suzuki
authors.forename: Yuichi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Tabe
authors.forename: Takaharu
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Fukasawa
authors.forename: Shinsuke
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kiriyama
authors.forename: Minoru
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Fukuchi
authors.forename: Hiroshi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Naitoh
authors.forename: Katsuhiko
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Horiuchi
authors.forename: Kazuhisa
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Yuasa
authors.forename: Hiroyuki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kuwano
mesh_terms: D000208:Acute Disease; D000328:Adult; D001062:Appendectomy; D001064:Appendicitis / Q000209:etiology* / Q000601:surgery; D001065:Appendix / Q000294:innervation*; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D004067:Digestive System Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis; D005260:Female; D005729:Ganglioneuroma / Q000175:diagnosis; D006801:Humans; D006984:Hypertrophy; D018814:Multiple Endocrine Neoplasia Type 2b / Q000175:diagnosis; D009474:Neurons / Q000473:pathology*