Amiodarone-induced bone marrow granulomas: an unusual cause of reversible pancytopenia

Abstract

Bone marrow infiltration by granulomas rarely presents with cytopenias and is usually a result of atypical infections, lymphomas, or sarcoidosis. Drugs are also an important but often overlooked causal agent of bone marrow granulomas. Although rare, amiodarone has been associated with bone marrow granuloma formation. This case report describes a 73-year-old male who presented with pancyto­penia during a preoperative evaluation. Amiodarone therapy was suspected to be the causal agent after diagnostic evaluation and exclusion of other causes. After cessation of amiodarone, the patient’s pancytopenia gradually resolved over a period of several months. Our report illustrates an often overlooked yet important cause of reversible pancytopenia owing to suspected amiodarone-induced bone marrow granuloma formation, and guides clin­icians in an expected timeline for blood count improvement after cessation of this drug.

Keywords

• Pancytopenia
• Bone Marrow Granulomas
• Amiodarone