Abstract
Although acute hepatitis and nephrotic syndrome are commonly reported as complications of tertiary syphilis, nephrotic syndrome concomitant with hepatitis in early-stage syphilis is rare. Here, we describe the case of a 46-year-old male who was diagnosed with acute liver dysfunction and nephrotic syndrome after presenting with general malaise, and who subsequently developed acute kidney injury. Laboratory examination showed alkaline phosphatase had a greater magnitude of elevation compared to alanine aminotransferase, suggesting the possibility of syphilitic hepatitis. The rapid plasmin regain test and Treponema pallidum hemagglutination assay were positive, supporting the presence of a syphilis infection. Additionally, liver biopsy examination showed infiltration of inflammatory cells into the portal area and epithelioid cell granulomas. Moreover, kidney biopsy examination by both optical and electron microscopy showed a congestion of neutrophils in the capillary vessels, structural collapse of the tubules, and subepithelial deposits under the epithelium of the glomerular endothelial cells. These pathological changes were consistent with those reported previously for early syphilitic hepatitis and nephrotic syndrome in early-stage syphilis. All the symptoms, including liver and renal dysfunction, resolved after benzyl penicillin treatment was initiated. Hence, we believe early-stage syphilis should be included in the differential diagnosis of unknown liver damage and/or nephrosis.
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Acknowledgments
The authors would like to greatly thank Prof. Yoshio Aizawa whose comments and suggestions were invaluable for the present report.
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Conflict of Interest: All authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest.
Human/Animal Rights: All procedures followed were in accordance with the ethical standards of the responsible committee on human experimentation (institutional and national) and with the Helsinki Declaration of 1975, as revised in 2008(5).
Informed Consent: Informed consent was obtained from all patients for being included in the study.
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Yoshikawa, K., Aida, Y., Seki, N. et al. Early syphilitic hepatitis concomitant with nephrotic syndrome followed by acute kidney injury. Clin J Gastroenterol 7, 349–354 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12328-014-0499-x
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12328-014-0499-x