Journal of the Formosan Medical Association
Volume 105, Issue 11 , Pages 911-917, 2006

Immunohistochemical Study of Lymph Nodes in Patients with Cat Scratch Disease

  • Ying-You Lin

      Affiliations

    • Graduate Institute of Veterinary Medicine, National Taiwan University, Taiwan
    • ,
  • Cheng-Hsiang Hsiao

      Affiliations

    • Department of Pathology, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan
    • ,
  • Yung-Hsiang Hsu

      Affiliations

    • Buddhist Tzu Chi General Hospital, Hualien, Taiwan
    • ,
  • Chin-Cheng Lee

      Affiliations

    • Shin Kong Wu Ho-Su Memorial Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan
    • ,
  • Hsiang-Jung Tsai

      Affiliations

    • Graduate Institute of Veterinary Medicine, National Taiwan University, Taiwan
    • ,
  • Ming-Jeng Pan

      Affiliations

    • Graduate Institute of Veterinary Medicine, National Taiwan University, Taiwan
    • Institute of Medical Biotechnology, Central Taiwan University of Science and Technology, Taichung, Taiwan
    • Corresponding Author InformationCorrespondence to: Dr Ming-Jeng Pan, Institute of Medical Biotechnology, Central Taiwan University of Science and Technology, 11 Pu-Tzu Lane, Beitun District, Taichung 40601, Taiwan

Received 18 October 2005; received in revised form 14 December 2005; accepted 2 May 2006.

Article Outline

Background/Purpose

Bartonella henselae is the causative agent of cat scratch disease (CSD), manifesting as fever and acute regional lymphadenopathy. Although serologic testing is the reference method for diagnosis, successful use of immunohistochemical (IHC) stain of regional lymph nodes for the diagnosis of CSD has been reported. To determine the characterization and diagnostic potential of IHC in lymphadenopathy of CSD, lymph nodes were excised from patients with suspected CSD for further evaluation.

Methods

Polyclonal antibody-based IHC studies were performed for the detection of B. henselae. Between January 2001 and December 2004, the reference laboratory of the Center for Disease Control, Taiwan, received a total of 377 sera from 352 reported suspected CSD cases. Twenty-three formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded lymph nodes from 16 patients and two skin biopsies from two patients suspected of having CSD were included in this study. Nine of them were serologically confirmed to have CSD and the others were seronegative but suspected to have CSD by the attending physicians. Seven lymph node specimens were obtained from tuberculosis patients for comparison.

Results

We demonstrated that the microorganisms existed in the cytoplasm of histiocytes within the granulomatous lesions in nine lymph nodes and one skin biopsy. Among the nine lymph nodes with IHC(+) stains, three were seronegative. On the other hand, three cases were IHC(+) and six cases were IHC(−) among nine seronegative patients. In addition, two seronegative patients with skin biopsy showed one IHC(+) and one IHC(−).

Conclusion

IHC can contribute to the etiologic diagnosis of B. henselae lymphadenopathy when serology and molecular techniques are not available.

Key Words:  Bartonella henselae , cat scratch disease , immunohistochemistry , lymph nodes

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PII: S0929-6646(09)60176-5

doi:10.1016/S0929-6646(09)60176-5

Journal of the Formosan Medical Association
Volume 105, Issue 11 , Pages 911-917, 2006

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