From the Department of Medicine, Section of Infectious and Tropical Diseases, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Islamic Republic of Iran.
Abstract: (4539 Views)
From April 1983 to September 1990, 32 patients with familial
mediterranean fever (FMF) were studied. FMF is characterized by short,
self-limited, febrile episodes that occur with inflammation of serosal surfaces.
Major symptoms include fever and abdominal pain, presenting as
acute surgical abdomen. These attacks are associated with considerable
morbidity and in some patients lead to unnecessary surgery. Diagnosis of this
disease depends on the absence of any objective markers and the recognition
of the symptoms in a susceptible individual. Duration of disease on
admission was 1.5-19 years. Except in two pairs of siblings, no familial
association was noted. This is the first review of the cases of FMF from Iran.