Case Report: A case of TAFRO syndrome with severe and prolonged thrombocytopenia: diagnostic pitfalls

Bibliographic Details
Title: Case Report: A case of TAFRO syndrome with severe and prolonged thrombocytopenia: diagnostic pitfalls
Authors: Hironori Sato, Atsuhiro Kanno, Minato Sato, Akari Endo, Hiroki Ito, Takahiro Ohara, Yuko Shirota, Kazuhiro Sumitomo, Takefumi Mori, Katsutoshi Furukawa
Source: Frontiers in Immunology, Vol 14 (2023)
Publisher Information: Frontiers Media S.A., 2023.
Publication Year: 2023
Collection: LCC:Immunologic diseases. Allergy
Subject Terms: acute kidney injury, TAFRO syndrome, disseminated intravascular coagulation, immune thrombocytopenia, thrombotic microangiopathy, Immunologic diseases. Allergy, RC581-607
More Details: Thrombocytopenia, anasarca, myelofibrosis, renal dysfunction, and organomegaly (TAFRO) syndrome is a rare condition with diverse clinical and pathological characteristics related to multi-organ damage. We report a case of TAFRO syndrome complicated by immune thrombocytopenia with prolonged fever and thrombocytopenia for several weeks. A 61-year-old man was transferred with sepsis caused by Enterococcus faecalis, and developed disseminated intravascular coagulation. Antibiotics treatment was initiated: however, low-grade fever and thrombocytopenia persisted despite the adequate antimicrobial treatment. Systemic edema, pleural effusion, and ascites had developed before hospitalization, and renal and liver function had deteriorated, resulting in progressive multi-organ damage. Prednisolone 40 mg/day was initiated based on the assumption of a condition in which excessive production of inflammatory cytokines would lead to systemic deterioration and fatal organ damage. Subsequently, the fever resolved, and renal function began to normalize. However, thrombocytopenia did not show much recovery trend after Helicobacter pylori eradication therapy and initiation of thrombopoietin receptor agonists. Bone marrow biopsy results showed normal bone marrow with no malignant findings. Alternatively, significant clinical signs met the diagnostic criteria for TAFRO syndrome, and a renal biopsy revealed thrombotic microangiopathy, which is also reasonable for renal involvement in TAFRO syndrome. The use of cyclosporine remarkably corrected the thrombocytopenia. We considered this a case of TAFRO syndrome that developed after sepsis with disseminated intravascular coagulation and performed the differential diagnosis of prolonged thrombocytopenia and excluded it. Although TAFRO syndrome is a unique disease concept, diagnostic criteria may consist of nonspecific elements such as generalized edema, thrombocytopenia, persistent fever, and elevated inflammatory response, and there are many differential conditions to exclude, requiring caution in diagnosing TAFRO syndrome.
Document Type: article
File Description: electronic resource
Language: English
ISSN: 1664-3224
Relation: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fimmu.2023.1266187/full; https://doaj.org/toc/1664-3224
DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1266187
Access URL: https://doaj.org/article/a4f5d06ad9e145948ede3192cbe62bb1
Accession Number: edsdoj.4f5d06ad9e145948ede3192cbe62bb1
Database: Directory of Open Access Journals
More Details
ISSN:16643224
DOI:10.3389/fimmu.2023.1266187
Published in:Frontiers in Immunology
Language:English