Pseudo-Placentational Endometrial Hyperplasia in the Bitch: Case Series

Canine pseudo-placentational endometrial hyperplasia differs from the classical form of cystic endometrial hyperplasia for the well-organized tissue architecture resembling the canine placenta. After the discovery, it has been inconstantly reported. The present work reports the clinicopathological details of six spontaneous cases retrieved retrospectively from a large database. The lesion was found in young non-pregnant female dogs (median 2.0 years) at the end of dioestrus. It could be imaged by ultrasound and was always grossly detectable as single or multiple uterine enlargements of 2-3 cm in diameter with a villous whitish tissue growing on the mucosa and occluding the lumen. Histology confirmed the tissue architecture of the canine placenta with a basal glandular layer, a connective band, a spongy layer and a tortuous and compact labyrinth, often poorly recognizable. The pseudo-placentational hyperplasia is a non-inflammatory proliferative lesion although numerous mast cells inhabit the connective band, and a superimposed inflammatory infiltrate was seen in a case. Canine pseudo-placentational endometrial hyperplasia has very peculiar features, and it is a model for canine placentation and may help to better understand the cystic endometrial hyperplasia/pyometra complex.