A RETROSPECTIVE HISTOPATHOLOGICAL STUDY OF LYMPH NODE BIOPSIES SEEN AT THE UNIVERSITY COLLEGE HOSPITAL, IBADAN, NIGERIA BETWEEN JANUARY 2003 AND DECEMBER 2012

Abstract

Background
Peripheral lymphadenopathy remains an extremely common clinical presentation in Nigeria, and
there have been many studies published on it from different parts of the country. The last study
in University College Hospital, Ibadan was in 1995. The aim of the current study is to provide an
update of the clinicopathological pattern of lymphadenopathy in Ibadan.
Methodology
All cases of lymph node biopsies received at the Department of Pathology, University College
Hospital, Ibadan, Nigeria from January 1st 2003 to December 31st 2012 were reviewed. The
clinical data, slides and paraffin blocks of these cases were retrieved. Fresh sections were
prepared and stained with haematoxylin and eosin. Special stains and immunohistochemistry
were also applied. The data was analysed using the student’s t and F tests for continuous
variables and the chi-squared test for discontinuous variables, with level of significance being p
≤ 0.05.
Results
There were 429 cases, with 251 being females and 178 males. Modal age range was in the sixth
decade. The mean age of females (41.4 years) was significantly greater than that of males (34.5
years), p=0.000. The commonest sites were axillary (31.5%) and neck groups (24%), with
axillary nodes more often involved in females and neck group of nodes more often involved in
males, p = 0.000. Metastatic cancer (35.7%) and reactive hyperplasia (25.4%) were the
commonest diseases of lymph node. Males more frequently had non-specific hyperplasia
(34.3%) and non-Hodgkin lymphoma (23.6%), while females more often had metastasis (45.4%)
and non-specific hyperplasia (19.1%), p = 0.000. Patients with metastatic cancer had the highest
mean age of 46.5 years, followed by those with malignant lymphomas (38.4 years) and reactive
hyperplasia (34.7 years), p = 0.000
Conclusion
This study has shown that primary and metastatic malignancies are common causes of
lymphadenopathy in this environment. The need for proper evaluation of patients with
lymphadenopathy cannot be overemphasised. The use of selective immunohistochemical
antibody panels is advocated for proper diagnosis of malignant lesions of the lymph node