Portal hypertension: An uncommon clinical manifestation of Takayasu arteritis in a 9-year‑old child

Abstract

Takayasu arteritis (TA) is the third most common childhood vasculitis and its clinical manifestations depend on the arteries involved. We report a case of a 9-year-old boy with multiple aneurysms in carotid and iliac arteries, subclavian and coronary arteries, and abdominal aorta. At the age of 7 years, he presented with recurrent fever and hepatosplenomegaly. An angio-computed tomography scan showed aneurysms in the left subclavian artery, abdominal aorta, and both proximal iliac arteries. He was diagnosed with TA and was treated with corticosteroids, aspirin, and enalapril. One year later, he was admitted to Dr Roberto Gilbert Children’s Hospital because of intracranial hemorrhage. Angiography revealed enlargement of aneurysms enlargement and new aneurysms. He also developed portal hypertension. Treatment with intravenous corticosteroids, azathioprine, and monthly intravenous cyclophosphamide was begun. After 6 months of no improvement, infliximab was begun. The aim of this article was to report the concurrence of coronary involvement and portal vein hypertension in pediatric TA because there were scarce reports on this matter.