title: Extraosseous langerhans cell histiocytosis in children.
abstract: Langerhans cell histiocytosis, a rare disease that occurs mainly in children, may produce a broad range of manifestations, from a single osseous lesion to multiple lesions involving more than one organ or system. The clinical course varies widely in relation to the patient's age. Multisystem disease may demonstrate especially aggressive behavior in very young children, with the outcome depending largely on the stage of disease and the degree of related organ dysfunction at the time of diagnosis. Extraosseous manifestations are less commonly seen than osseous ones and may be more difficult to identify. To accurately detect extraosseous Langerhans cell histiocytosis at an early stage, radiologists must recognize the significance of individual clinical and laboratory findings as well as the relevance of imaging features for the differential diagnosis. The pattern and severity of pulmonary, thymic, hepatobiliary, splenic, gastrointestinal, neurologic, mucocutaneous, soft-tissue (head and neck), and salivary involvement in Langerhans cell histiocytosis generally are well depicted with conventional radiography, ultrasonography, computed tomography, and magnetic resonance imaging. However, the imaging features are not pathognomonic, and a biopsy usually is necessary to establish a definitive diagnosis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Vaudois-CHUV, Rue du Bugnon, 1011 Lausanne, Switzerland. sabine.schmidt@chuv.ch
authors.forename: Sabine
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Schmidt
authors.forename: Georg
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Eich
authors.forename: Anne
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Geoffray
authors.forename: Sylviane
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Hanquinet
authors.forename: Peter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Waibel
authors.forename: Rainer
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Wolf
authors.forename: Igor
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Letovanec
authors.forename: Leonore
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Alamo-Maestre
authors.forename: Francois
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Gudinchet
mesh_terms: D002675:Child, Preschool; D003952:Diagnostic Imaging / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D006646:Histiocytosis, Langerhans-Cell / Q000175:diagnosis*; D006801:Humans; D007089:Image Enhancement / Q000379:methods*; D008297:Male; D009102:Multiple Organ Failure / Q000175:diagnosis*