Rare kikuchi disease reported at SSKM hospital
For the first time in Kolkata, a 36-year-old woman was recently diagnosed with Kikuchi disease, a very rare acute disorder of lymph nodes that is usually seen among younger women.
For the first time in Kolkata, a 36-year-old woman was recently diagnosed with Kikuchi disease, a very rare acute disorder of lymph nodes that is usually seen among younger women.
The disease was first reported in Japan in 1972. Since then, it has infected around 110 people across the world.
The patient, identified as Sharmila Basu Mallick, was brought to the SSKM Hospital with symptoms likes swollen lymph nodes, fever and pain.
She also complained of weight loss, nausea, vomiting and a sore throat.
“It’s a very rare disorder of lymph nodes. There are no regular statistics on the number of kikuchi-infected patients in our country. I have never treated such a case in my professional career spanning 30 years. Her symptoms were a little confusing, so I advised her to go for a biopsy. The test showed that it is a case of rare kikuchi disease,” professor Soumita Ghosh, head of general medicine department at SSKM Hospital, said.
“She was treated in the hospital for several weeks and has been discharged recently. We couldn’t find any specific reason that might have caused the disease. Therefore, we opted for only symptomatic treatment. And she requires to follow-up for at least six months from now,” Ghosh added.
The disease might be fatal if it’s not detected and treated on time, one of the doctors in the general medicine department, said.
“My wife was suffering from high fever and swelling of glands since May. I took her to some senior specialists in premier private hospitals in the city. But none of them could detect anything. They had given only highdose antibiotics, which aggravated her problem. Finally, I took her to Dr Soumitra Ghosh at SSKM medicine department and he advised a biopsy that detected the disease,” said Biswabrata Basu Mallick, an advocate at the Calcutta High Court, said.
