Clinical Pathology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Cornell University

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Clinical Pathology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Cornell University

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02/24/2024

Our latest diagnostic challenge: Bloodwork from a 15 week old puppy.
Check it out on EClinPath.com: https://eclinpath.com/case-1-2024/

Answer will be in the hashtags, if you need a clue 😀 💉💊

02/18/2024

An expansion of our previous post - dysmorphic red blood cells in urine from a dog with renal hematuria. The misshapen red blood cells are highlighted in the modified Wrights stain of a line smear of the urine sediment (arrows).
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02/11/2024

The many faces of biliary epithelium…..

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02/03/2024

Mandibular swelling in a 2 year old dog: What’s your diagnosis?
Scroll down for answer…..
✅Cryptococcal infection - budding yeast with thick non-staining capsules
✅Septic suppurative inflammation- many neutrophils with intracellular and extracellular bacteria
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01/28/2024

Capillary zone electrophoretogram from a dog with hyperglobulinemia: Do you think this is: A) Monoclonal or B) Polyclonal?

Scroll down for answer……
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✅ A) Monoclonal
Although the globulin peak has a wide base, the tip of the peak is as sharp as the albumin peak and there is a right sided “shoulder”. This pattern is typical of an IgA paraproteinemia due to multiple myeloma or an extramedullary plasma cell tumor.

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01/20/2024

Mesenteric lymph node aspirate from a 13 year old cat with multiple intestinal masses: What do you think is going on?

Ask yourself if there are normal lymph node constituents and then decide if something nefarious is occurring in the node.

Scroll down for answer……the arrowed cells in the first low power image are in-built clues.
✅ There are low numbers of small lymphocytes (arrowheads, first image), suggesting aspiration of a node.
✅ However, there are too many round cells with eccentric nuclei containing smooth chromatin (arrows, first image). The cells have a moderate to large amount of cytoplasm with a hint of light purple granulation. These are mast cells and they show criteria of malignancy, including moderate anisokaryosis, variable nuclear to cytoplasmic ratios and reniform nuclei. There are also low numbers of neutrophils and eosinophils (second image).
✅ Results were consistent with a mast cell tumor that had effaced the node. The primary tumor(s) was likely an intestinal mass.
🔬 Modified Wright’s stain

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01/14/2024

Two images this week….The images are from an aspirate of a liver in an older dog with multiple liver nodules on abdominal ultrasound.

Which image represents normal hepatocytes, and which represents a metastatic pancreatic carcinoma?

Scroll down for answer……
✅ Image 1: Normal hepatocytes containing small amounts of lipofuscin in their cytoplasm. There are also necrotic cells (arrow), likely tumor cells, and a ruptured individualized tumor cell (arrowhead).
✅ Image 2: A cluster of metastatic pancreatic carcinoma cells. Note the pink zymogen granules in their deep blue cytoplasm.

01/07/2024

Crystals in rabbit urine: Thoughts?

Scroll down for answer…..

✅ Calcium carbonate (dissolved in hydrochloric acid and acetic acid and insoluble in sodium hydroxide).
✅ Urine crystals frequently contain calcium in rabbits (they’re like small horses in this sense😀).

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12/31/2023

Last post of 2023!

Identify the arrowed cells in this blood smear from a dog …..scroll down for answer…..
✅ Arrow: Keratocyte
✅ Arrowheads: Acanthocytes

These red blood cell shapes indicate fragmentation injury. There are numerous echinocytic red blood cells in the background (regularly spiculated cells or burr cells). The dog had chronic renal failure and echinocytes have been associated with glomerulonephritis.
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12/24/2023

A urine sediment challenge…….

Identify the arrowed cells……

Scroll down for answer…..
✅ Dysmorphic red blood cells: Red blood cells with abnormal shapes, including small cytoplasmic blebs
✅ These red blood cells abnormalities have been associated with renal hematuria, particularly of glomerular origin, in people.
✅ The urine was from a cat with azotemia and proteinuria (2+ in a urine specific gravity of 1.014). A renal hematuria was suspected in this case.

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12/18/2023

A compilation of prehensile skink leukocytes: This species of skink normally have round nuclei in heterophils, so segmentation of heterophil nuclei is an abnormal finding and may be due to inflammation in this case (given the toxic change in the heterophils).

12/09/2023

Blood from a pigeon: Identify the arrowed cell…. Scroll down for answer……
✅ Toxic band heterophil: Bluer cytoplasm and fewer secondary granules than normal
✅ This finding indicates systemic inflammation
✅ The other cells are two thrombocytes (middle far left and upper right), a lymphocyte (upper left) and a segmented heterophil without toxic change (middle left)
🔬 Modified Wrights stain

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