Asplenia history and symptoms

Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]; Associate Editor(s)-in-Chief: Kalpana Giri, MBBS[2]

Patients with asplenia may have a positive history of trauma, surgery, sickle cell disease, chronic liver disease, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), malignancies, thalassemia, celiac disease, ulcerative colitis, sarcoidosis, amyloidosis, lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, mutations in RPSA, connexin 43 and ZIC3. Common symptoms include chills, sore throat, diarrhea, muscle aches, abdominal pain, nausea and vomiting, neck stiffness, altered mental status. Less common symptoms include cyanosis, respiratory distress.

Patients with asplenia may have a positive history of:

• Trauma^[1]
• Surgery
• Sickle cell disease^[2]
• Chronic liver disease, human immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV), malignancies, thalassemia, celiac disease, ulcerative colitis, sarcoidosis, amyloidosis, lupus, rheumatoid arthritis^[3]
• Heterozygous coding mutations in RPSA
• Genetic defect: connexin 43 and ZIC3 have been shown to be involved in heterotaxia syndromes.^[4]

Common symptoms of asplenia include:

• Fever ^[5]
• Chills
• Sore throat
• Diarrhea
• Muscle aches
• Abdominal pain^[2]
• Nausea and vomiting
• Neck stiffness (nuchal rigidity) ^[6]
• Altered mental status
• Myalgia

• Cyanosis ^[2]
• Respiratory distress

​

Template:WikiDoc Sources