Spectrum of Kikuchi-Fujimoto Disease: A 10-Year Study in a Tertiary Care Centre in South India

Background Kikuchi-Fujimoto disease (KFD) is a benign lesion of the lymph nodes predominantly seen in younger women and is a condition associated with a good prognosis due to its indolent nature. Since KFD is chiefly a diagnosis of exclusion, it is liable to a higher degree of misdiagnosis. Aim In our study, we attempt to document and analyse the demographic, clinical, and pathological spectrum of cases diagnosed as KFD in a South Indian tertiary care centre over a period of 10 years. Methodology This study was conducted in a retrospective observational manner. Descriptive statistics, including simple frequency and percentage, were used to analyse and summarise the collected data. Results Among the 44 cases obtained, 36 patients were female and eight were males, with an age range of eight to 70 years. The mean age of the affected population was 26 years. Fever was a presenting complaint in 63.6% of cases, and 100% of the cases had lymphadenopathy, chiefly affecting the posterior cervical group of nodes (32/44 cases). Multiple lymph node groups were involved in 22 cases. Most of the nodes were larger than 1 cm in their greatest dimension. On analysis of peripheral smears, 43.2% of patients showed leukopenia. Anti-nuclear antibody (ANA) analysis showed a positive status among two patients, simultaneously establishing the diagnosis of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). A history of treated tuberculosis was present in four patients, and one patient had a history of non-compliance with TB treatment. Two patients had recently been diagnosed with TB and were on treatment. The involved nodes were subjected to fine-needle aspiration studies in 13 patients; 12/13 cases showed reactive lymphadenitis, while one case had atypical lymphoid cells. The involved nodes of all the patients were excised and sent for histopathological analysis. The diagnosis of KFD was confirmed on the biopsy. Conclusion In this study, we note the clinical presentations of all the patients diagnosed with KFD and elaborate on the investigations that were employed to verify the diagnosis via exclusion that enabled differentiation of KFD from its close mimickers, which have specific treatment. Keeping this entity in mind is essential in order to prevent overdiagnosis, as most often this condition resolves spontaneously, and in occasional cases, symptomatic treatment is sufficient for its management.