Analysis of the cases with Henoch-Schönlein vasculitis

Abstract

Henoch-Schönlein vasculitis is the most common systemic vasculitis in children and it has a benign course and characterized purpura, arthritis and gastrointestinal and/or renal involvement. In this study we planned to analyze and compare of the clinical and laboratory characteristics of the patient with Henoch-Schönlein vasculitis with literature. We analyzed 135 cases with Henoch-Schönlein vasculitis, who had been followed up at the departments of pediatrics of Ondokuz Mayis University and Gülhane Military Medical School between January 1993 and January 2000, retrospectively. Of the 135 patients, eighty (59.2%) were male and fifty-Five (40.8%) were girl, and the median age was 9.5 years (10 months to 17 years). The distribution of the patients to the season was as Follows: 15% in spring, 18.5% in summer, 21.1% in autumn, and 45.4% in winter. The most complaints of admission were purpura (100%), abdominal pain (62%) and arthralgia (48.8%). There was a positive history of upper respiratory tract infection in the last month in 41.4% of the cases. On physical examination, purpura, arthritis, edema of the legs, fever and hypertension were found in the 100%, 37.7%, 31.8%, 11% and 5.9% of the cases, respectively. Gastrointestinal hemorrhage, renal involvement, and scrotal involvement were observed 29.6%, 55.5% and 7.4% of the cases, respectively. It was learned that one patient had been appendectomized a month before. While the improvement time has not been different between the cases with or without complication, microscopic hematuria continued 2 to 6 months in the patients who had renal involvement. Henoch-Schönlein purpura has a benign course and permanent complications resulted from organ involvement are very rare.