Curschmann's spirals in cyst fluid associated with a teratoma of the ovary- A case report

BACKGROUND: Curschmann's spirals, first described more than 100 years ago, are common in cytologic specimen from the respiratory tract and have also b een observed in cervical smears, urine, and peritoneal and pleural effusion s. No simple theory can explain the exact mode of spiral formation, which i s presumed to be a complex physical and biochemical phenomenon. CASE: A 29-year-old woman, gravida 2, para 2, underwent right ovarian cyst excision after an abnormal ultrasound examination revealed a cystic mass of the right ovary. Histologically, the cyst was an immature cystic teratoma containing respiratory epithilium with mucous glands in the submucosa. Cyto logic examination of the cysts fluid showed the presence of Curschmann's sp irals. CONCLUSION: To the best of our knowledge, the formation of Curschmann's spi rals associated with an immature cystic teratoma has not been previously re ported. In this situation, the presence of spirals could be Explained by fo rmation from mucus normally found in that environment.