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Case Reports
. 2005 Oct;20(5):899-900.
doi: 10.3346/jkms.2005.20.5.899.

Acute appendicitis in Henoch-Schönlein purpura: a case report

Chan Jong Kim  1 , Hae Yul Chung, So Youn Kim, Young Ok Kim, Seong Yeob Ryu, Jung Chul Kim, Jae Hun Chung
Affiliations
Case Reports

Acute appendicitis in Henoch-Schönlein purpura: a case report

Chan Jong Kim et al. J Korean Med Sci. 2005 Oct.

Abstract

Common complications of Henoch-Schönlein purpura (HSP) that lead to surgical intervention include intussusception, perforation, necrosis, and massive gastrointestinal bleeding. Acute appendicitis is rarely seen as a complication of HSP. A seven-year-old boy was admitted for arthralgia, abdominal pain, hematochezia, melena, and purpuric rash on the lower extremities. On admission day abdominal ultrasonography was normal, but on day 5, he became pyrexial and developed right iliac fossa pain and tenderness with guarding. Ultrasonography showed distended appendix surrounded by hyperechoic inflamed fat. On exploration an acutely inflamed, necrotic appendix was removed and grossly there was an appendiceal perforation in the appendiceal tip. Microscopically some of the small blood vessels in the submucosa showed fibrinoid necrosis with neutrophilic infiltrations. The authors report the case of a child who developed acute perforative appendicitis requiring appendectomy while on treatment for HSP.

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Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Submucosal blood vessel shows fibrinoid necrosis with neutrophilic infiltrations (H&E, ×150).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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