Diagnostics (Jul 2023)

Cat Scratch Disease—A Benign Disease with Thymic Hyperplasia Mimicking Lymphoma

  • Ming Hui Leong,
  • Mohd Jadi Nabillah,
  • Iqbal Hussain Rizuana,
  • Abdullah Asma,
  • Thean Yean Kew,
  • Geok Chin Tan

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3390/diagnostics13142457
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 13, no. 14
p. 2457

Abstract

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Cat scratch disease (CSD) is a benign condition caused by the inoculation of Bartonella henselae. The imaging findings are non-specific, and it is difficult to diagnose the disease via imaging. However, imaging studies help exclude other differential diagnoses in diagnostic dilemmas. We encountered a case of a 17-year-old adolescent who presented with painful neck swelling. CT showed multiple bilateral cervical lymphadenopathies with triangular soft tissue mass at the anterior mediastinum likely to be thymic hyperplasia, which is unusual in CSD and was mistaken for a lymphoproliferative disorder. Tissue diagnosis with a thorough clinical history yielded the diagnosis of cat scratch disease, and follow-up imaging showed resolution of the cervical lymphadenopathy and thymic hyperplasia.

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