Epstein-Barr Virus Infectious Mononucleosis in a Splenectomized Patient

Abstract

The clinical picture in infectious mononucleosis (IM) consists primarily of pharyngitis, fever, and lymphadenopathy. IM is a common clinical syndrome. However, little attention has been paid to a clinical feature of IM that can occur in a previously splenectomized subject. Indeed, the clinical features of splenectomized patients with IM have not yet been fully described. Especially, in Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), to our knowledge, there is no report in the English language literature. We describe here an atypical IM case; an asplenic but healthy male presented with acute primary EBV infection. He was afebrile, there was an absence of lymphadenopathy, and there was relatively marked lymphocytosis in his peripheral blood. This case illustrates that an asplenic state can distort the typical clinical picture of EBV mononucleosis.




J Med Cases. 2013;4(6):353-356
doi: https://doi.org/10.4021/jmc1254e