title: Immune thrombocytopenic purpura as a complication of Bartonella henselae infection.
abstract: Immune thrombocytopenic purpura is an infrequent yet well-recognized complication of viral infections, such as mumps, rubella, varicella, cytomegalovirus, parvovirus and infectious monunucleosis by Epstein-Barr virus. Some recent studies have described a possible association between Henoch-Schonlein purpura, a non-thrombocytopenic purpura, and seropositivity for Bartonella henselae, but in the literature only sporadic case reports have described a severe immune thrombocytopenic purpura as a complication of Bartonella henselae infection. We report a case of an immunocompetent child with clinical and serological evidence of Bartonella henselae infection presenting with purpura and cervical lymphoadenopathy and treated with intravenous immunoglobulin. The patient obtained a rapid and persistent increase in platelet count and a complete regression of purpura.
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Pediatria, Ospedale di Sondrio, Sondrio, Italy.
authors.forename: Emilio
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Palumbo
authors.forename: Federica
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Sodini
authors.forename: Giuseppe
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Boscarelli
authors.forename: Giuseppina
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Nasca
authors.forename: Maurizio
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Branchi
authors.forename: Guido
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Pellegrini
mesh_terms: D018416:Bartonella henselae; D002372:Cat-Scratch Disease / Q000150:complications* / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy; D002648:Child; D006801:Humans; D011695:IgA Vasculitis; D016756:Immunoglobulins, Intravenous / Q000627:therapeutic use; D008297:Male; D011696:Purpura, Thrombocytopenic / Q000209:etiology*; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D016756:Immunoglobulins, Intravenous