Campos, Patricia and Mano, Diana and Antunes, Rui (2022) Tuberculosis Presenting as Acute Sepsis and Secondary Hemophagocytic Lymphohistiocytosis. European Journal of Case Reports in Internal Medicine, 9 (2). pp. 1-4. ISSN 2284-2594
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Abstract
We report the case of a 61-year-old man admitted to our emergency department with fever. At admission, he was hypotensive and tachycardic. In the initial investigation, elevation of inflammatory parameters, acute kidney injury (Kidney Disease Improving Global Outcomes (KDIGO) 3), hyperbilirubinemia, and hepatic cytocholestasis were evident. Empirical antibiotic therapy was started, after sepsis was assumed without an identifiable cause. His condition took an unfavorable clinical course, with respiratory failure, hepatosplenomegaly, pancytopenia, hyperferritinemia and hypofibrinogenemia. Microbial culture studies and a general immunological study were negative and lymphoproliferative disease was therefore excluded. Bone marrow aspirate revealed hemophagocytosis without granulomas. A diagnosis of hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis was assumed and pulse methylprednisolone therapy initiated. As this resulted in only a transient improvement, immunoglobulin and rituximab were initiated as a second-line therapy. The patient sadly had an unfavorable outcome despite all measures undertaken. In the postmortem study, Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex was isolated in the bone marrow aspirate, which led to the postmortem diagnosis of disseminated tuberculosis and angioinvasive pulmonary aspergillosis. The clinical presentation of disseminated tuberculosis is non-specific and hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis is one of its rare presentations. The mortality rate of hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis is high and increases with delayed diagnosis of the underlying condition and respective treatment.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | Hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis, disseminated tuberculosis, immunosuppressive therapy, aspergillosis, intensive care |
| Subjects: | 600 Tecnologia - Scienze applicate > 610 Medicina e salute (Classificare qui la tecnologia dei servizi medici) |
| Depositing User: | Marina Spanti |
| Date Deposited: | 14 Apr 2022 12:35 |
| Last Modified: | 14 Apr 2022 12:35 |
| URI: | http://eprints.bice.rm.cnr.it/id/eprint/21798 |
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