PRIMARY AMYLOIDOSIS OF THE MESENTERY AND THE RETROPERITONEUM PRESENTING WITH LYMPHEDEMA

We report the case of a 57-yr-old woman presenting with moderate weigh t loss, abdominal distension, and lymphedema of the legs and vulva. Co mputed tomography of the abdomen revealed massive thickening of the re ctal wall, mesentery, and retroperitoneum. Primary amyloidosis was dia gnosed by immunohistochemistry from the rectum and duodenum. To our kn owledge, lymphedema due to primary amyloidosis has not yet been report ed. The diagnosis should be presumed in the case of retroperitoneal th ickening and lymphedema and can be established by immunohistochemistry . (C) 1998 by Am. Cell. of Gastroenterology.