Histiocytic medullary reticulosis with involvement of the nose

Abstract

A case of histiocytic medullary reticulosis in which nasal involvement was predominant is reported. The patient was a 33-year-old woman with a 14-month history of unilateral nasal stuffiness. The diagnosis was established by antemortem examination of films of bone marrow aspirates and by clinical features including fever, wasting, hepatosplenomegaly, anemia, and leukopenia. The histologic examination of autopsy specimens disclosed proliferation of histiocytes, which ingested nuclear debris and closed proliferation of histiocytes, which ingested nuclear debris and erythrocytes, in the necrotic lesion of the nose, sternal bone marrow, liver, spleen, thymus, uterus, ovali, and ileum. On reviewing literature on this subject, such a case of histiocytic medullary reticulosis which predominantly involves the nose is very rare.