ABSTRACT
Introduction: Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a chronic, multifaceted autoimmune inflammatory disease with a wide range of clinical presentations resulting from its effect on multiple organ systems. We report a case of SLE associated with autoimmune pancreatitis. Methods: In this study, we present a patient diagnosed as having SLE who developed acute auto-immune pancreatitis. Results: This is a 36-year-old woman, with lupus diagnosed since 2009. Initially, the manifestations of her disease were dermatological and articular. Then appeared the renal involvement with a lupus nephropathy class IV at the renal biopsy (PBR). She was previously treated with the NIH protocol then oral prednisolone with improvement in her symptoms. She continued these medications but was lost to follow-up since 2016 and presented after 6 years with pigmented skin lesions on her upper and lower limbs, abdominal pain and distension, vomiting, and an altered general condition. In biology, the patient presented a functional acute kidney failure, an elevated amylasemia (30 times normal), an elevated lipasemia (6 times normal), a normocytic normochromic hemolytic anemia with positive direct coombs test, lymphopenia, a positive immunological assessment (AAN, anti DNA AC, anti Sm, anti SSA, anti RNP), a low C3, a low C4. The patient presented a lupus flare with a SLEDAI score of 6 points: moderate lupus activity. Ultrasound confirmed a large abundance of ascites. Ascites fluid puncture showed an exudate with hyperleukocytosis with predominantly PNN and no germ on direct examination nor on culture.The infectious origin of the pancreatitis was eliminated (CMV, tuberculosis, covid19), as well as the tumoral origin (negative tumor markers, abdominal CT scan showed a swollen pancreas in its caudal portion with loss of physiological lobulations and normal spontaneous density.Necrosis flows difficult to individualize. In addition, no deep neoplastic focus). The autoimmune origin of the pancreatitis due to its lupus attack was retained. She was put on corticosteroids (500mg intravenously for 3 days) then relayed by oral route, albumin infusion, evacuation puncture. The subsequent evolution was marked by the progressive normalization of the pancreatic balance and the slower disappearance of the ascites. Conclusions: Acute pancreatitis is an unusual manifestation of SLE and it should be suspected in any SLE patient with these similar symptoms. In many cases, this complication has been attributed to the drugs administered. In our case, a favorable course of pancreatitis with corticosteroids adds further evidence to the idea that lupus-related pancreatitis is not a side effect of corticosteroid therapy. Moreover, treatment with these medications improves the prognosis. No conflict of interest
ABSTRACT
Introduction: Infectious peritonitis (IP) is one of the main complications in peritoneal dialysis (PD). Abdominal pain is often the revealing symptom of this complication which can also be clinically silent and diagnosed after the discovery of a cloudy aspect of the effluent dialysis fluid. Other etiologies may mimic the symptoms of IP in PD. Methods: We report the case of a PD patient who presented with abdominal pain and turbid peritoneal fluid with a biological inflammatory syndrome, and the final diagnosis was peritoneal carcinomatosis complicating colon cancer. Results: A 71-year-old female patient with a history of hypertension and vascular end-stage kidney disease. She started two years earlier (2019) on peritoneal dialysis. During these two years, she had undergone only one episode of infectious peritonitis. She presented in January 2021 with deep asthenia. There were no abnormalities in the clinical examination. Laboratory tests were normal except for normocytic normochromic anemia (8g/dl). SARS-CoV-2 infection was suspected given the epidemiological context but we performed a test (Polymerase Chain Reaction) and it was negative. Three months later she presented with abdominal pain and asthenia. The clinical examination found the right-side abdomen sensitive to touch. Dialysis fluid was turbid and the cytobacteriological examination showed hypercellularity with 90% of neutrophils with a negative culture. She also had hyperleukocytosis (12770 e/mm3) with neutrophil predominance, microcytic anemia (6.2d/dl), a high c reactive protein (CRP) level (133.3 mg/l), and procalcitonin level was 1.49 ng/ml. She was put on an empiric antimicrobial therapy. Abdominal pain remained intense after 48 hours with an altered general condition, which motivated the request for computed tomography (CT) scan of the abdomen. The CT scan showed an irregular process tissue of the right colic angle with invasion of segment VI of the liver and peritoneal carcinomatosis. Conclusions: The indication of imaging exams should be broadened so as not to miss out on serious diagnoses that mimic IP No conflict of interest