Immunostaining in hirschsprung's disease: Al-khobar experience

Abstract

The role of immunoperoxidase stains in the diagnosis of Hirschsprung's disease was evaluated in a total of 60 sections from 40 cases originally diagnosed based on the findings from hematoxylin-eosin staining done in our laboratory. Neuron-specific enolase was very effective in highlighting rare scanty ganglion cells in two cases that had been classified as aganglionic. S-100 protein was effective in illustrating nerve fiber proliferation in submucosa and lamina propria, which may be difficult to demonstrate using hematoxylin-eosin alone. We recommend the use of immunoperoxidase stains as an important adjunct to hematoxylineosin for the diagnosis of Hirschsprung's disease when using paraffin sections.