Cryoglobulinemia as an Initial Manifestation of Underlying Hematological Malignancy: A Rare Occurrence in India

• Main Authors: Narender Kumar, Reena Das, Dinesh Chandra, Pankaj Malhotra
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Thieme Medical and Scientific Publishers Pvt. Ltd. 2014-07-01
• Series: Journal of Laboratory Physicians
• Subjects: cryoglobulin; cryoglobulinemia; lymphoplasmacytic lymphoma; rouleaux formation
• Online Access: http://www.thieme-connect.de/DOI/DOI?10.4103/0974-2727.141516

Cryoglobulinemias rarely been reported from India even though associated conditions such as hepatitis C infection, rheumatoid arthritis and plasma cell dyscrasias, etc., are common occurrences. In many regions of the country, temperatures in winter can be conducive to the precipitation of cryoglobulins, yet epidemiology of the disease suggests that it is a common condition in the west. We encountered a 68-year-old-male patient who presented with a history of headache off and on along with hepatosplenomegaly. The rare occurrence of cryoglobulinemia in our setting can delay the diagnosis, as happened in our case, since the index of suspicion of clinicians and laboratory personnel is low. We are reporting this case because of the rarity and protean clinical manifestations of cryoglobulinemia.