title: Chronic anemia as a complication of parvovirus B19 infection in a pediatric kidney transplant patient.
abstract: This is a report of unexplained anemia that persisted for 4 months in an adolescent renal transplant patient receiving immunosuppression that included prednisone, tacrolimus, and mycophenolate mofetil. This patient required monthly blood transfusions for fatigue, palpitations, and hematocrit levels between 15% and 17%. In addition, his posttransplant course was notable for the development of insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus. While receiving low-dose prednisone, he was switched from tacrolimus to cyclosporin and tapered off insulin injections over the next 2 months. At 4.5 months post-transplantation, further diagnostic evaluation was suggestive of parvovirus B19 infection as the cause for our patient's chronic anemia. After testing negative for serum-specific parvovirus B19 IgM and IgG antibodies, parvovirus B19 infection was detected in blood by the polymerase chain reaction. Treatment with intravenous immunoglobulin (1 g/kg per day x 2 days) resulted in normalization of both his reticulocyte count and hematocrit within 6 weeks. At 4 months after receiving the immunoglobulin infusion, he has maintained a normal hematocrit level and stable renal function without requiring further blood transfusions.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, University of California San Francisco Medical Center 94143, USA.
authors.forename: R S
authors.initials: RS
authors.lastname: Mathias
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000740:Anemia / Q000097:blood / Q000209:etiology*; D002908:Chronic Disease; D006400:Hematocrit; D006801:Humans; D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use; D007677:Kidney Function Tests; D016030:Kidney Transplantation / Q000502:physiology*; D008297:Male; D010322:Parvoviridae Infections / Q000097:blood*; D016732:Parvovirus B19, Human; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction
chemical_list: D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents