Multicentric reticulohistiocytosis with arthritis and cardiac infiltration: regression following treatment for underlying malignancy

Abstract

The case is reported of a 63 year old man presenting with a rapidly destructive symmetrical polyarthritis and widespread papular nodular skin lesions, confirmed by a biopsy to be due to multicentric reticulohistiocytosis. Biventricular cardiac failure developed secondary to extensive myocardial infiltration with multicentric reticulohistiocytosis, a complication of this disease which has not previously been reported. The joint, skin, and cardiac manifestations of multicentric reticulohistiocytosis substantially regressed following resection of an associated squamous cell carcinoma. This report adds to the small amount of published work which suggests that multicentric reticulohistiocytosis can be a paraneoplastic disease that may respond to treatment directed at the underlying tumour.