RECURRENT HYPERBILIRUBINEMIA, A FEATURE OF FAMILIAL MEDITERRANEAN FEVER - REPORT OF A CHILD AND REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE

Recurrent hyperbilirubinaemia was described as a feature of familial M editerranean fever in the 1950s and early 1960s. However, over the las t 33 years only one case has been published. We present a 12-year-old Arab boy who developed recurrent hyperbilirubinaemia in the course of familial Mediterranean fever. His response to colchicine was excellent . Review of the literature reveals that hyperbilirubinaemia of familia l Mediterranean fever has a distinct clinical picture characterized by concurrent peritonitis, minimal jaundice and short duration. Factors contributing to the paucity of reports in recent literature are discus sed.