Clinical outcome of Fitz-Hugh-Curtis syndrome mimicking acute biliary disease.
OBJECTIVE
To analyze the clinical characteristics of patients diagnosed with Fitz-Hugh-Curtis syndrome.


METHODS
The clinical courses of patients that visited St. Mary's Hospital with abdominal pain from January 2005 to December 2006 and were diagnosed with Fitz-Hugh-Curtis syndrome were examined.


RESULTS
Fitz-Hugh-Curtis syndrome was identified in 22 female patients of childbearing age; their mean age was 31.0+/-8.1 years. Fourteen of these cases presented with pain in the upper right abdomen alone or together with pain in the lower abdomen, and six patients presented with pain only in the lower abdomen. The first impression at the time of visit was acute cholecystitis or cholangitis in 10 patients and acute appendicitis or pelvic inflammatory disease in eight patients. Twenty-one patients were diagnosed by abdominal computer tomography (CT), and the results of abdominal sonography were normal for 10 of these patients. Chlamydia trichomatis was isolated from 18 patients. Two patients underwent laparoscopic adhesiotomy and 20 patients were completely cured by antibiotic treatment.


CONCLUSIONS
For women of childbearing age with acute pain in the upper right abdomen alone or together with pain in the lower abdomen, Fitz-Hugh-Curtis syndrome should be considered during differential diagnosis. Moreover, in cases suspected to be Fitz-Hugh-Curtis syndrome, abdominal CT, rather than abdominal sonography, assists in the diagnosis.
Woo
Seong Yong
SY
Division of Gastroenterology, Department of Internal Medicine, the Catholic University of Korea, #62, St. Mary's Hospital, Yeouido-dong, Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul 150-713, South Korea.
Kim
Jin Il
JI
Cheung
Dae Young
DY
Cho
Se Hyun
SH
Park
Soo-Heon
SH
Han
Joon-Yeol
JY
Kim
Jae Kwang
JK
D015746:Abdominal Pain / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000188:drug therapy; D000208:Acute Disease; D000328:Adult; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial / Q000097:blood; D001660:Biliary Tract Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000188:drug therapy; D002690:Chlamydia Infections / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy; D002692:Chlamydia trachomatis / Q000276:immunology; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007249:Inflammation / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000188:drug therapy; D008875:Middle Aged; D017699:Pelvic Pain / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000188:drug therapy; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D013577:Syndrome; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D055815:Young Adult
D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial