A histomorphological study of lesions of tonsil in tertiary care hospital

Abstract

Palatine tonsils are paired masses of lymphoid tissue which act as immunologic barrier against the entry of pathogenic agents into the respiratory and digestive tracts. Despite their protective function, tonsils are prone to infection. Tonsillitis is a common disease especially among the children. Chronic tonsillitis is a disease with repeated attacks of acute tonsillitis or a sub-clinic form of a resistant or poorly treated infection. To study the histomorphological findings of various lesions of tonsils. A cross sectional study was carried out at a department of pathology in a tertiary care hospital for a period of two years. A total 160 cases of the histomorphologically identified tonsillectomy specimens were included and stained by Hematoxylin & Eosin . We studied histopathology of 160 cases, out of which 156 were tonsillectomy specimens, 4 were tonsillar biopsies. The age of patients ranged from 1 to 60 years. In our study the histomorphological diagnosis showed 45(28.1%) cases showed chronic tonsillitis, 62(38.7%) cases of follicular tonsillitis, 5(3.2%) cases of chronic tonsillitis showed actinomycotic colonies, with no tissue reaction, 2(1.2%) cases of acute on chronic tonsillitis, and 40(25%) cases of reactive lymphoid hyperplasia and 5(3.2%) cases of Acute suppurative tonsillitis 1(0.6%) cases and 1(0.6%) case of moderately differentiated squamous cell carcinoma were seen. Routine histomorphogical study of tonsillectomy specimens has a low cost-benefit rate, and most diagnostic tool for early screening and follow-up of malignancy.