Abstract

Background: Many millions of people around the world suffer from preventable pulmonary diseases. The clinical and radiological findings in most of the respiratory diseases are nonspecific and correct diagnosis cannot be made solely from them. Histopathological examination serves the purpose in such cases. An autopsy is an important complementary tool for identifying and understanding the pathology of respiratory diseases and to find out the condition of internal organs.

Objective: The objective of this study was to find out the prevalence of various lung pathologies by histopathological examination of lung tissue received as autopsy specimens.

Material and Methods: The study was done on 410 lung specimens from autopsy cases received in this department over the period of 18 months. Gross findings and microscopic features were recorded. The tissue specimens were fixed in 10% formalin and processed. Paraffin sectioning was done followed by haematoxylin and eosin staining. The sections were then examined by experienced histopathologists.

Result: During the period between January 2015 to June 2016, a total of 410 lungs from autopsy specimens were studied. Lung diseases were more common in males as compared to females. Most common lung pathological findings were of pneumonia (20%), tuberculosis (16.1%), emphysema (6.6%) and malignant lesions (1.7%) among the cases studied.

Conclusion: Advances in diagnostic technology have not reduced the value of autopsy and a goal-directed autopsy remains a vital component in the study and evaluation of the disease process. There are large numbers of cases of preventable respiratory diseases. This indicates that the autopsy has remained an important complementary tool for identifying and understanding respiratory diseases despite recent advances in diagnostic technology.

Key words: Autopsy, Tuberculosis, Pneumonia, Emphysema