Objective: Fine needle aspiration (FNA) is emerging as a rapid and minimally invasive tool in evaluating lymphadenopathy associated with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). We evaluated the role of FNA in differentiating various causes of lymphadenopathy in patients with HIV and correlated the cytological diagnosis with CD4 counts. Methods: Seventy-nine HIV-positive patients (median age 35 years, 68 male) underwent ultrasound-guided (n = 16) and unguided (n = 63) FNA from 1999 to 2006. Smears were stained with May-Grunwald-Giemsa, haematoxylin & eosin and Papanicolaou stains. Ziehl-Neelsen (ZN) staining for acid-fast bacilli (AFB) was performed in all cases. Staining for fungus was performed whenever required. Results: The aspirates were adequate in 75 cases (95%). Non-specific reactive hyperplasia was the most common FNA diagnosis (39, 52%) followed by granulomatous necrotizing lymphadenitis (15, 20%), necrotizing lymphadenitis (13, 17.3%) and granulomatous lymphadenitis (4, 5.2%). Fungal infection and non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) were seen in two patients each. ZN staining was positive for AFB in 25 (33.3%) cases. One of these was morphologically interpreted as reactive hyperplasia, 12 as necrotizing lymphadenitis and 12 as granulomatous necrotizing lymphadenitis. Both patients with NHL had CD4 counts below 100/dl. Necrotizing lymphadenitis and granulomatous lymphadenitis were significantly associated with CD4 counts below and above 200/dl, respectively (P = 0.0002). Conclusions: FNA is an important tool for assessing the cause of lymphadenopathy in HIV patients. Necrotizing inflammation is more often seen in patients with low CD4 counts. AFB are commonly found in necrotic aspirates with or without granulomas. However, a stain for AFB should be performed in all aspirates from HIV-related lymphadenopathy including reactive hyperplasia.
