Cardiovascular amyloidosis with giant cell reaction.--Two autopsy cases

Two autopsy cases, a 77-year-old man and a 66-year-old woman, of cardiovascular amyloidosis with many giant cells were reported. These cells were always found adjacent to amyloid masses which were deposited mainly in small arteries and arterioles, and some of them contained amyloid substance in their cytoplasms. The incidence of these cells was high in the heart and in the kidneys of both cases, and in the latter case the cells were found in the majority of the organs varying in degree. The significance of the giant cells, which probably originated from macrophages, were discussed and that giant cells might appear as a foreign body reaction to amyloid substance was presumed.