Autoimmune Hemolytic Anemia Occurred Prior to Evident Nephropathy in a Patient with Chronic Hepatitis C Virus Infection: Case Report

Overview

Journal BMC Nephrol

Publisher Biomed Central

Specialty Nephrology

Date 2003 Aug 30

PMID 12946280

Citations 3

Authors

Isao Ohsawa

Yuki Uehara

Sumiko Hashimoto

Morito Endo

Takayuki Fujita

Hiroyuki Ohi

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Background: Renal involvement in patients with chronic hepatitis C virus infection has been suggested to be due to a variety of immunological processes. However, the precise mechanism by which the kidneys are damaged in these patients is still unclear.

Case Presentation: A 66 year old man presented with the sudden onset of autoimmune hemolytic anemia. Concomitant with a worsening of hemolysis, his initially mild proteinuria and hemoglobinuria progressed. On admission, laboratory tests revealed that he was positive for hepatitis C virus in his blood, though his liver function tests were all normal. The patient displayed cryoglobulinemia and hypocomplementemia with cold activation, and exhibited a biological false positive of syphilic test. Renal biopsy specimens showed signs of immune complex type nephropathy with hemosiderin deposition in the tubular epithelial cells.

Conclusions: The renal histological findings in this case are consistent with the deposition of immune complexes and hemolytic products, which might have occurred as a result of the patient's underlying autoimmune imbalance, autoimmune hemolytic anemia, and chronic hepatitis C virus infection.

Citing Articles

Diagnosis and Management of Autoimmune Hemolytic Anemia in Patients with Liver and Bowel Disorders.

Bianco C, Coluccio E, Prati D, Valenti L J Clin Med. 2021; 10(3).

PMID: 33499290 PMC: 7865399. DOI: 10.3390/jcm10030423.

Severe refractory autoimmune hemolytic anemia with both warm and cold autoantibodies that responded completely to a single cycle of rituximab: a case report.

Gupta S, Szerszen A, Nakhl F, Varma S, Gottesman A, Forte F J Med Case Rep. 2011; 5:156.

PMID: 21504611 PMC: 3096571. DOI: 10.1186/1752-1947-5-156.

Hepatocellular carcinoma with chronic B-type hepatitis complicated by autoimmune hemolytic anemia: a case report.

Okada T, Kubota K, Kita J, Kato M, Sawada T World J Gastroenterol. 2007; 13(32):4401-4.

PMID: 17708620 PMC: 4250873. DOI: 10.3748/wjg.v13.i32.4401.

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