NEET MDS Lessons
General Pathology
THE ADRENAL GLANDS
ADRENAL CORTEX
The adrenal cortex synthesizes three different types of steroids:
1. Glucocorticoids (principally cortisol), which are synthesized primarily in the zona fasciculata
2. Mineralocorticoids, the most important being aldosterone, which is generated in the zona glomerulosa; and
3. Sex steroids (estrogens and androgens), which are produced largely in the zona reticularis.
ADRENAL MEDULLA
The adrenal medulla is populated by cells derived from the neural crest (chromaffin cells) and their supporting (sustentacular) cells.
They secrete catecholamines in response to signals from preganglionic nerve fibers inthe sympathetic nervous system.
Psoriasis
1. Characterized by skin lesions that appear as scaly, white plaques.
2. Caused by rapid proliferation of the epidermis.
3. Autoimmune pathogenesis; exact mechanism is unclear.
STOMACH
Congenital malformations
1. Pyloric stenosis
Clinical features. Projectile vomiting 3-4 weeks after birth associated with a palpable "olive" mass in the epigastric region is observed.
Pathology shows hypertrophy of the muscularis of the pylorus and failure to relax.
2. Diaphragmatic hernias are due to weakness in or absence of parts of the diaphragm, allowing herniation of the abdominal contents into the thorax.
Inflammation
1. Acute gastritis (erosive)
Etiology. Alcohol, aspirin and other NSAIDs, smoking, shock, steroids, and uremia may all cause disruption of the mucosal barrier, leading to inflammation.
Clinical features. Patients experience heartburn, epigastric pain, nausea, vomiting, hematemesis, and even melena.
2. Chronic gastritis (nonerosive) may lead to atrophic mucosa with lymphocytic infiltration.
Types
(1) Fundal (Type A) gastritis is often autoimmune in origin. It is the type associated with pernicious anemia and, therefore, achlorhydria and intrinsic factor deficiency.
(2) Antral (Type B) gastritis is most commonly caused by Helicobacter pylori and is the most common form of chronic gastritis in the U.S. H. pylori is also responsible for proximal duodenitis in regions of gastric metaplasia.
Clinical features. The patient may be asymptomatic or suffer epigastric pain, nausea, vomiting, and bleeding. Gastritis may predispose to peptic ulcer disease, probably related to H. pylori infection.
3. Peptic ulcers
Peptic ulcers are usually chronic, isolated ulcers observed in areas bathed by pepsin and HCI; they are the result of mucosal breakdown
Common locations are the proximal duodenum, the stomach, and the esophagus, often in areas of Barrett's esophagus.
Etiology. There are several important etiologic factors.
Duodenal ulcers occur predominantly in patients with excess acid secretion, while gastric ulcers usually occur in patients with lower than average acid secretion.
Other predisposing conditions include smoking, cirrhosis, pancreatitis, hyperparathyroidism, and H. pylori infection. Aspirin, steroids, and NSAlDs are known to be assoicated with peptic ulcer disease. Next to H. pylori colonization, aspirin or NSAID ingestion is the most common cause of peptic ulcer.
Clinical features. Patients experience episodic epigastric pain. Duodenal and most gastric ulcers are relieved by food or antacids. Approximately one-fifth of gastric ulcer patients get no relief from eating or experience pain again within 30 minutes.
Pathology. Benign peptic ulcers are well-circumscribed lesions with a loss of the mucosa, underlying scarring, and sharp walls.
Complications include hemorrhage, perforation, obstruction, and pain. Duodenal ulcers do not become malignant .Gastric ulcers do so only rarely; those found to be ma1ignant likely originated as a cancer that ulcerated.
Diagnosis is made by upper gastrointestinal Series , endoscopy, and biopsy to rule out malignancy or to demonstrate the presence of H. pylori.
4. Stress ulcers
are superficial mucosal ulcers of the stomach or duodenum or both. Stress may be induced by burns, sepsis shock, trauma, or increased intracranial pressure.
Tumors
1. Benign
a. Leiomyoma, often multiple, is the most common benign neoplasm of the stomach. Clinical features include bleeding, pain, and iron deficiency anemia.
b. Gastric polyps are due to proliferation of the mucosal epithelium.
2. Malignant tumors
a. Carcinoma
Etiology. Primary factors include genetic predisposition and diet; other factors include hypochlorhydria, pernicious anemia, atrophic gastritis, adenomatous polyps, and exposure to nitrosamines. H. pylori are also implicated.
Clinical features. Stomach cancer is usually asymptomatic until late, then presents with anorexia, weight loss, anemia, epigastric pain, and melena. Virchow's node is a common site of metastasis.
Pathology. Symptomatic late gastric carcinoma may be expanding or infiltrative. In both cases the prognosis is poor (approximately 10% 5-year survival), and metastases are frequently present at the time of diagnosis.
Adenocarcinomas are most common.
b. Gastrointestinal lymphomas may be primary In the gastrointestinal tract as solitary masses.
c. Sarcoma is a rare, large, ulcerating mass that extends into the lumen.
d. Metastatic carcinoma. Krukenberg's tumor is an ovaria metastasis from a gastric carcinoma.
e. Kaposi's sarcoma. The stomach is the most commonly involved GI organ in Kaposi's sarcoma. It primarily occurs in homosexual men, appearing as hemorrhagic polypoid, umbilicated nodular lesions, typically in a submucosal location. It rarely causes symptoms
Hepatic failure
Etiology. Chronic hepatic disease (e.g., chronic active hepatitis or alcoholic cirrhosis) is the most common cause of hepatic failure although acute liver disease may also be responsible.
- Widespread liver necrosis may be seen with carbon tetrachloride and acetaminophen toxicity. Widespread steatosis is seen in Reye's syndrome, a cause of acute liver failure most often seen in children with a recent history of aspirin ingestion for an unrelated viral illness.
- Massive necrosis may also be seen in acute viral hepatitis, after certain anesthetic agents, and in shock from any cause.
Clinical features. Hepatic failure causes jaundice, musty odor of breath and urine, encephalopathy, renal failure (either by simultaneous toxicity to the liver and kidneys or the hepatorerial syndrome), palmar erythema, spider angiomas, gynecomastia , testicular atrophy
Congenital heart defect
Congenital heart defects can be broadly categorised into two groups,
o acyanotic heart defects ('pink' babies) :
An acyanotic heart defect is any heart defect of a group of structural congenital heart defects, approximately 75% of all congenital heart defects.
It can be subdivided into two groups depending on whether there is shunting of the blood from the left vasculature to the right (left to right shunt) or no shunting at all.
Left to right shunting heart defects include
- ventricular septal defect or VSD (30% of all congenital heart defects),
- persistent ductus arteriosus or PDA,
- atrial septal defect or ASD,
- atrioventricular septal defect or AVSD.
Acyanotic heart defects without shunting include
- pulmonary stenosis, a narrowing of the pulmonary valve,
- aortic stenosis
- coarctation of the aorta.
cyanotic heart defects ('blue' babies).
obstructive heart defects
cyanotic heart defect is a group-type of congenital heart defect. These defects account for about 25% of all congenital heart defects. The patient appears blue, or cyanotic, due to deoxygenated blood in the systemic circulation. This occurs due to either a right to left or a bidirectional shunt, allowing significant proportions of the blood to bypass the pulmonary vascular bed; or lack of normal shunting, preventing oxygenated blood from exiting the cardiac-pulmonary system (as with transposition of the great arteries).
Defects in this group include
hypoplastic left heart syndrome,
tetralogy of Fallot,
transposition of the great arteries,
tricuspid atresia,
pulmonary atresia,
persistent truncus arteriosus.
LUNG ABSCESS Lung abscess is a localised area of necrosis of lung tissue with suppuration.
It is of 2 types:
- Primary lung abscess that develops in an otherwise normal lung. The commonest cause is aspiration of infected material.
- Secondary lung abscess that develops as a complication of some other disease of the lung or from another site
ETIOPATHOGENESIS.
The microorganisms commonly isolated from the lungs in lung abscess are streptococci, staphylococci and various gram-negative organisms. These are introduced into the lungs from one of the following mechanisms:
1. Aspiration of infected foreign material.
2. Preceding bacterial infection.
3. Bronchial obstruction.
4. Septic embolism.
5. Miscellaneous (i) Infection in pulmonary infarcts, (ii) Amoebic abscesses, (iii) Trauma to the lungs. (iv) Direct extension from a suppurative focus.
Abscesses may be of variable size from a few millimeters to large cavities, 5 to 6 cm in diameter. The cavity often contains exudate. An acute lung abscess is initially surrounded by acute pneumonia and has poorly-defined ragged wall. With passage of time, the abscess becomes chronic and develops fibrous wall.
Microscopic Examination
The characteristic feature is the destruction of lung parenchyma with suppurative exudate in the lung cavity. The cavity is initially surrounded by acute inflammation in the wall but later there is replacement by exudate of lymphocytes, plasma cells and macrophages. In more chronic cases, there is considerable fibroblastic proliferation forming a fibrocollagenic wall.
Posterior Pituitary Syndromes
The posterior pituitary, or neurohypophysis, is composed of modified glial cells (termed pituicytes) and axonal processes extending from nerve cell bodies in the hypothalamus. The hypothalamic neurons produce two peptides: antidiuretic hormone (ADH) and oxytocin that are stored in axon terminals in the neurohypophysis.
The clinically important posterior pituitary syndromes involve ADH production and include
1. Diabetes insipidus and
2. Inappropriate secretion of high levels of ADH.
- ADH is released into the general circulation in response to increased plasma oncotic pressure & left atrial distention.
- It acts on the renal collecting tubules to increase the resorption of free water.
- ADH deficiency causes diabetes insipidus, a condition characterized by polyuria. If the cause is related to ADH Diabetes insipidus from - - ADH deficiency is designated as central, to differentiate it from nephrogenic diabetes insipidus due to renal tubular unresponsiveness to circulating ADH.
- The clinical manifestations of both diseases are similar and include the excretion of large volumes of dilute urine with low specific gravity. Serum sodium and osmolality are increased as a result of excessive renal loss of free water, resulting in thirst and polydipsia.
- ADH excess causes resorption of excessive amounts of free water, with resultant hyponatremia.
- The most common causes of the syndrome include the secretion of ectopic ADH by malignant neoplasms (particularly small-cell carcinomas of the lung), and local injury to the hypothalamus and/or neurohypophysis.
- The clinical manifestations are dominated by hyponatremia, cerebral edema, and resultant neurologic dysfunction.