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The cytological examination of cavity fluids has limited sensitivity in the diagnosis of malignancy. Aneuploidy, which is commonly observed in neoplastic cells, could potentially be used as an ancillary diagnostic tool. To evaluate the detection of aneuploid cells in cavitary effusion samples using the fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) assay UroVysion ® with some adaptations and two different cutoff strategies. Seventy samples of pleural or peritoneal fluid with positive (n = 40), negative (n = 15), or suspicious (n = 15) oncotic cytology were subjected to FISH assay with the multitarget UroVysion ® kit, which is composed of probes that hybridize to the centromeric region of chromosomes 3, 7, and 17 and to the locus 9p21. FISH performance was evaluated using two different cutoffs: (1) the manufacturer's cutoff (M‐FISH) and 2) a proposed cutoff (P‐FISH). Using M‐FISH, the diagnostic sensitivity was 57.1%, specificity 87.5%, and accuracy 60.0%; with P‐FISH, the sensitivity was 87.3%, specificity 71.4%, and accuracy 85.7%. When combined with cytology, the sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy were 88.0%, 83.3%, and 87.8%, respectively. Malignant cells presented a predominance of chromosomal gains. The UroVysion ® test using the P‐FISH cutoff was effective in demonstrating aneuploid cells in all malignant effusions, confirming the diagnosis of malignancy even in cases with suspicious cytology.

Pericardial effusion associated with transient abnormal myelopoiesis in Down's syndrome neonates needs to be diagnosed in a timely manner, and the comorbidities must be treated to prevent mortality. To our knowledge, the occurrence of basophilic/eosinophilic pericardial effusion without an increase of these cells in the peripheral blood and with no evidence of associated hypothyroidism is rare.

AimTo detect differences in the pattern of serum calcium tests ordering before and after the implementation of a decision algorithm.MethodsWe studied patients admitted to an internal medicine ward of a university hospital on April 2013 and April 2016. Patients were classified as critical or non-critical on the day when each test was performed. Adequacy of ordering was defined according to adherence to a decision algorithm implemented in 2014.ResultsTotal and ionised calcium tests per patient-day of hospitalisation significantly decreased after the algorithm implementation; and duplication of tests (total and ionised calcium measured in the same blood sample) was reduced by 49%. Overall adequacy of ionised calcium determinations increased by 23% (P=0.0001) due to the increase in the adequacy of ionised calcium ordering in non-critical conditions.ConclusionsA decision algorithm can be a useful educational tool to improve adequacy of the process of ordering serum calcium tests.

Infections caused by uncommon and resistant pathogens in unusual sites have been increasingly reported in medical literature. We describe four cases of rare cytological findings and clinical impact for patients. In the first case, Aspergillus sp and Pneumocystis jirovecii were observed in the bronchoalveolar lavage of a patient with severe systemic lupus. In the second and third cases, we describe the presence of Trichomonas sp and Strongyloides sp larvae in samples of pleural and peritoneal fluid, respectively. The fourth report is about a patient with a wrist subcutaneous nodule whose synovial aspiration and cytology revealed the presence of brown septate hyphae. The early identification of the infectious agent in the cytological examination was essential for the introduction and/or re-adaptation of therapy in the four cases described. Patients in this report were immunocompromised with severe comorbidities, conditions often associated with unfavorable clinical outcomes.