Diagnosis of Whipple's disease using molecular biology techniques

Rev Esp Enferm Dig. 2011 Apr;103(4):213-7.
[Article in English, Spanish]

Abstract

The diagnosis of Whipple's disease (WD) is based on the existence of clinical signs and symptoms compatible with the disease and in the presence of PAS-positive diastase-resistant granules in the macrophages of the small intestine. If there is suspicion of the disease but no histological findings or only isolated extraintestinal manifestations, species-specific PCR using different sequences of the T. whippleii genome from different tissue types and biological fluids is recommended.This study reports two cases: the first patient had diarrhea and the disease was suspected after an endoscopic examination of the ileum, while the second patient had multi-systemic manifestations,particularly abdominal, thoracic, and peripheral lymphadenopathies. In both cases, the diagnosis was confirmed using molecular biology techniques to samples from the small intestine or from a retroperineal lymph node, respectively.

Publication types

  • Case Reports

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Aged
  • Anti-Bacterial Agents / therapeutic use
  • Arthritis, Infectious / etiology
  • Duodenum / microbiology
  • Duodenum / pathology
  • Endoscopy, Gastrointestinal
  • Genotype
  • Glioma / etiology
  • Humans
  • Ileum / microbiology
  • Ileum / pathology
  • Lymph Nodes / pathology
  • Male
  • Polymerase Chain Reaction / methods
  • Retroperitoneal Space
  • Ribotyping
  • Supratentorial Neoplasms / etiology
  • Temporal Lobe / pathology
  • Tropheryma / genetics
  • Tropheryma / isolation & purification*
  • Whipple Disease / complications
  • Whipple Disease / diagnosis*
  • Whipple Disease / drug therapy
  • Whipple Disease / microbiology
  • Whipple Disease / pathology

Substances

  • Anti-Bacterial Agents