[Sarcoidosis and Whipple's disease: an association or a relationship?]

Abstract

Whipple's disease is a rare, systemic disorder characterized by arthritis, serositis, diarrhea, malabsorption, lymphadenopathies, weight loss, fever, cutaneous hyperpigmentation and central and peripheral nervous system disorders. There are approximately 60 published cases with pulmonary involvement, in general pleuritis, hilar adenopathies and interstitial affectation. In some occasions, sarcoidosis has been diagnosed prior to WD, postulating either a causal association between both entities, or a relationship between them, existing in WD and initial phase which mimics sarcoidosis. We present a patient diagnosed of sarcoidosis who during the evolution of the disease developed gastrointestinal symptoms compatible with WD.