Exfoliative sputum cytology in pulmonary embolism.

In a prospective, double-blind, randomized study of cytologic changes found in pulmonary infarction, nine roentgenologically proven cases of pulmonary embolism were studied with sputum samples from the 1st to 26th postinfarction days. Maximum atypical cytologic changes were seen during the second and third postinfarction weeks. Specific cytologic features included three-dimensional clusters of glandular cells with enlarged nuclei and macronucleoli: they were malignant-appearing cells except for their inconsistent morphology, fewer numbers, transient appearance and lack of solitary atypical cells. A similar study in a canine model is discussed, and a case of pulmonary embolism with abnormal cytology and corresponding histology is presented.