Background:Papanicolaou (Pap) stain has been used over the years for cervical cytology screening. However; it utilizes a considerable amount of alcohol which is expensive and difficult to procure. In one of the modifications, ethyl alcohol is replaced by 1% acetic acid and is termed as rapid, economical, acetic acid Papanicolaou (REAP) stain. It is cost effective, easily available and provides a suitable and rapid staining alternative.Aim:This study was undertaken to assess the efficacy of REAP stain as an alternative method to conventional Pap stain.Materials and Methods:This study was done over a period of 18 months in a tertiary care hospital. Two sets of cervical smears were prepared of which one was stained with conventional Pap stain, and other was stained with REAP stain. The smears were examined for cytomorphological parameters and were evaluated using a modification of parameters given by Ng et al.Results:A total of 737 smears were examined in duplicate. Most of the conventional Pap smears showed excellent preservation (91.6%) with very few showing optimal (7.6%) and sub-optimal staining (0.8%). In contrast to this excellent preservation was seen in just 33.6% of the REAP stained smears with majority showing optimal and sub-optimal preservation (46.5% and 20% respectively). The P value was statistically significant (<0.0001) depicting inferior staining quality of REAP stain.Conclusion:Rapid, economical, acetic acid Papanicolaou stain undoubtly is a simple, fast and cost effective stain which can be adopted mainly in resource limited settings, but cannot be utilized for research purpose in a tertiary care setup due to poor preservation of the staining quality.

Persistent Mullerian duct syndrome (PMDS) is usually an accidental finding either during orchidopexy or during routine inguinal hernia repair in male patients presenting with undescended testes.It is a rare form of internal male pseudohermaphroditism caused by defect in synthesis or action of Mullerian inhibiting factor due to which Mullerian derivatives such as uterus, fallopian tube and upper vagina are normally present in 46XY males. Here we present a case report of a 7 year old male presenting with bilateral undescended testes.

No abstract

Background: Synovial lipoma is a rare entity and needs high index of suspicion for accurate diagnosis. It is a condition that needs early intervention to prevent progressive joint effusion and degeneration. Case Presentation: This case report describes an adolescent patient with a rare unilateral presentation of synovial lipoma. A 17-year-old female presented with pain and swelling in her left knee from past 2 years. X-ray findings of left knee showed a soft tissue shadow. Left knee synovectomy was performed due to progression of disease. Grossly a single, yellowish, fatty soft tissue piece was received. Histologically, lesion chiefly consists of proliferating mature fat infiltrating the hypertrophic synovial villi. Conclusion: Based on histopathological findings, a diagnosis of synovial lipoma was established. In given clinical scenario, synovial lipoma may be included in differential diagnosis of refractory chronic joint effusion and knee pain with otherwise negative workup.