Ciliated bodies in ovarian cyst aspirates.

Ciliated bodies, or detached ciliary tufts, are ciliated fragments of cytoplasm from columnar epithelial cells. In gynecologic cytology they have been observed in cervicovaginal smears and peritoneal washings and very occasionally in fluids from the pouch of Douglas. They occur frequently in the fluids of ovarian cysts. The authors detected ciliated bodies in 30 of 326 ovarian cyst fluid samples (9.20% of cases) taken from 27 patients aged 14-68 years. Ciliated bodies were found in the fluids from both bilateral cysts in one patient and in slides from both former and recurrent cysts in two. Surgery was performed in 14 of the cases, with histologic examination revealing 5 simple serous cysts, 3 paraovarian cysts, 3 serous papillary cystoadenofibromas, 1 serous cystoadenoma and 2 mature cystic teratomas. In the remaining cases the pertinent clinical data, including ultrasound ecography, revealed benign paraovarian and ovarian cysts. The existence of ciliated bodies in the fluids of ovarian cysts indicated the presence of ciliated columnar epithelial cells on the wall of the cysts, which would exclude cysts of follicular origin.