Epstein-Barr Virus Versus Novel Coronavirus-Induced Hemophagocytic Lymphohistocytosis: The Uncharted Waters

• Main Authors: Rawan Amir MD (Author), Asim Kichloo MD (Author), Jagmeet Singh MD (Author), Ravinder Bhanot MD (Author), Michael Aljadah MD (Author), Akshay Kumar MD (Author), Michael Stanley Albosta MD (Author), Shantanu Solanki MD, MPH (Author)
• Format: Book
• Published: SAGE Publishing, 2020-08-01T00:00:00Z.
• Subjects: article
• Online Access: Connect to this object online.

Summary

Hemophagocytic lymphohistocytosis (HLH) is a hyperinflammatory syndrome characterized by fever, hepatosplenomegaly, and pancytopenia. It may be associated with genetic mutations or viral/bacterial infections, most commonly Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) and cytomegalovirus. As for the novel coronavirus, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2), also known as COVID-19 (coronavirus disease-2019), the cytokine storm it triggers can theoretically lead to syndromes similar to HLH. In this article, we report a case of a 28-year-old female who presented with high-grade fevers, found to have both SARS-CoV-2 and EBV infections, and eventually began to show signs of early HLH. To our knowledge, this is the first case reported in literature that raises the possibility of SARS-CoV-2-related HLH development.

Item Description

2324-7096
10.1177/2324709620950107