Kikuchi fujimoto disease in Israel--more than a pain in the neck.
OBJECTIVE
Kikuchi Fujimoto disease (KFD) is a rare, benign disorder, usually characterized by cervical lymphadenopathy. Most available data on KFD has come from the Far East. We examined the characteristics of KFD in Israel.


METHODS
A retrospective analysis of the records of all patients diagnosed as KFD in seven medical centers in Israel and all the cases previously reported as having occurred in Israel in the literature.


RESULTS
Nineteen patients were included, 13 new cases and six from the literature. Mean age of patients was 23 (range 9-50) years. Female/male ratio was 1.1:1. Cervical lymphadenopathy, the hallmark of KFD in the Far East (97%), was less frequent in Israel (44%). However, Israeli patients presented more often with generalized (26%) or retroperitoneal (21%) lymphadenopathy (P < 0.01). Systemic signs such as fever (73%), night sweats (21%), weight loss (21%), hepatomegaly or splenomegaly (25%), and elevated sedimentation rate (52%) were more common in Israeli patients compared to most reports from other parts of the world, excluding Germany (P < 0.05). Leukopenia was evident in most Israeli patients (72%) in contrast to other countries (P < 0.01). Clinical presentation of KFD in Germany was comparable to Israel in most aspects.


CONCLUSIONS
The clinical presentation of KFD in Israel often resembles a systemic disease with fever, leukopenia and generalized or retroperitoneal lymphadenopathy in more than half of the cases, contrary to the presentation in the Far East, which typically includes cervical lymphadenitis, and less frequently, systemic manifestations.
Rimar
Doron
D
The Ruth and Bruce Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel. doronrimar@gmail.com
Zisman
Devy
D
Schendler
Yaakov
Y
Benharroch
Daniel
D
Kharenko
Oleg
O
Brodsky
Alexander
A
Okopnik
Marina
M
Bitterman
H
H
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D020042:Histiocytic Necrotizing Lymphadenitis / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000473:pathology; D006801:Humans; D007557:Israel / Q000453:epidemiology; D008198:Lymph Nodes / Q000473:pathology; D008206:Lymphatic Diseases / Q000150:complications / Q000473:pathology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009333:Neck; D019547:Neck Pain / Q000209:etiology / Q000473:pathology*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D055815:Young Adult