Bioactive glass (BAG) is often used as a filler material for repair of dental bone defects. Although there is evidence of osteogenic potential of this material, it is not clear yet whether the material exhibits potential for dentinogenesis. Hence, the aim of the present study was to evaluate BAG as a pulpotomy agent and to compare it with three commercially available pulpotomy agents such as formocresol (FC), ferric sulfate (FS), and mineral trioxide aggregate (MTA). Pulpotomies were performed in 80 maxillary first molars of Sprague Dawley rats, and pulp stumps were covered with BAG, FC, FS, and MTA. Histologic analysis was performed at 2 weeks and then at 4 weeks after treatment. Experimental samples were compared with contra-lateral normal maxillary first molars. At 2 weeks, BAG showed inflammatory changes in the pulp. After 4 weeks, some samples showed normal pulp histology, with evidence of vasodilation. At 2 weeks, MTA samples showed some acute inflammatory cells around the material with evidence of macrophages in the radicular pulp. Dentine bridge formation with normal pulp histology was a consistent finding at 2 and 4 weeks with MTA. Ferric sulfate showed moderate inflammation of pulp with widespread necrosis in coronal pulp at 2 and 4 weeks. Formocresol showed zones of atrophy, inflammation, and fibrosis. Fibrosis was more extensive at 4 weeks with evidence of calcification in certain samples. Among the materials tested, MTA performed ideally as a pulpotomy agent causing dentine bridge formation while simultaneously maintaining normal pulpal histology. It appeared that BAG induced an inflammatory response at 2 weeks with resolution of inflammation at 4 weeks.

It is commonly believed that cytodiagnosis of Hodgkin's lymphoma (HL) is much easier than that of non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL). However, recognition of certain NHL subtypes with Reed-Sternberg (R-S)-like cells and results of immunohistochemical studies point to the contrary. To study the limitations of cytology in diagnosis of HL, fine-needle aspiration (FNA) smears of 130 lymphoma or suspected lymphoma cases were reviewed. Initial and reviewed cytodiagnoses were compared with histopathology in 89 cases. Immunocytochemical and immunohistochemical studies were performed in 56 and 59 cases, respectively. Among histologically diagnosed HL cases, definitive cytodiagnosis of HL (initial as well as reviewed) was significantly less frequent than cytodiagnosis of NHL among histologically diagnosed NHL cases (P = 0.0328 and = 0.0001, respectively). On the other hand, cytologically diagnosed HL/NHL cases were significantly more frequent in the former group (P = 0.0001 and = 0.0018, respectively). ALCL and TCRBCL were the two NHL subtypes which created confusion with HL in FNA smears. Twenty-one cytohistological concordant HL cases and equal number of discordant cases were compared. When compared with discordant group, the patients in concordant group were significantly younger (P = 0.045). Hodgkin/Hodgkin-like cells and typical R-S cells were significantly more frequent in FNA smears of the concordant group (P = 0.0478 and = 0.0431, respectively). Immunocytochemical and immunohistochemical studies showed good correlation with histological diagnosis of HL. It is suggested that proper interpretation of cytologic features, together with use of immunocytochemical parameters can help in reducing the margin of error in cytodiagnosis of HL.

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Psammoma bodies (PBs) form an important diagnostic criterion of papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC), but their mechanism of formation is not clear. Following our observation in a case of PTC that laminated hyaline globules may be the precursor form of PBs, the present study was undertaken to find out their relation to PBs in PTC cases. Fifty-four cases of PTC and 14 follicular neoplasms, diagnosed by fine-needle aspiration (FNA) cytology, were studied by one of the investigators (DKD) to find out the PBs, irregular calcifications, hyaline globules, and other forms made of similar material. PBs along with irregular calcification were present in five PTC cases, PB alone was present in 1 case, and irregular calcification alone was present in 4 cases. Large hyaline globules (LHGs), small hyaline globules (SHGs), branching hyaline cylinders (BHCs), and irregular hyaline deposits (IHDs) were identified in 10, 14, 6, and 9 cases, respectively. One or more of these four forms were present altogether in 18 (33.3%) of PTC cases and none of the follicular neoplasms (P=0.0142). These forms were present in 80.0% of cases with PB/irregular calcifications as opposed to 22.7% in cases without them (P=0.0012). Our observations suggest that LHGs, SHGs, and BHCs are precursors of PBs and IHDs serve as a nidus for irregular calcification.