Case Report
Copyright ©2007 Baishideng Publishing Group Co., Limited. All rights reserved.
World J Gastroenterol. Jul 28, 2007; 13(28): 3897-3899
Published online Jul 28, 2007. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v13.i28.3897
Pseudoxantoma elasticum, as a repetitive upper gastrointestinal hemorrhage cause in a pregnant woman
Vedat Goral, Dogan Demir, Yekta Tuzun, Ugur Keklikci, Huseyin Buyukbayram, Kadim Bayan, Asur Uyar
Vedat Goral, Yekta Tuzun, Kadim Bayan, Department of Gastroenterology, Dicle University School of Medicine, Diyarbakir, Turkey
Dogan Demir, Department of Family Medicine, Dicle University School of Medicine, Diyarbakir, Turkey
Ugur Keklikci, Department of Ophtalmology, Dicle University School of Medicine, Diyarbakir, Turkey
Huseyin Buyukbayram, Department of Pathology, Dicle University School of Medicine, Diyarbakir, Turkey
Asur Uyar, Department of Radiology, Dicle University School of Medicine, Diyarbakir, Turkey
Author contributions: All authors contributed equally to the work.
Correspondence to: Professor Dr. Vedat Goral, Dicle University School of Medicine Department of Gastroenterology, Diyarbakir, Turkey. vegoral@hotmail.com
Telephone: +90-412-2488443 Fax: +90-412-2488443
Received: April 15, 2007
Revised: May 8, 2007
Accepted: May 12, 2007
Published online: July 28, 2007
Abstract

Pseudoxantoma elasticum is a rare, hereditary, multisystemic disease affecting the skin, eye, and cardiovascular system. A twenty-eight-year-old female has presented to emergency unit with the complaint of gastrointestinal hemorrhage. This patient, who had been monitored in the gastroenterology clinic more than 10 times in the past 8 years, noted a repetitive hemorrhage during her previous pregnancy in her history. The examination of the patient revealed the following signs and symptoms: atrophy in the epithelium of the retina pigment; typical angioid streaks and peau d'orange finding in the fundus; thinning of the retinal nerve fiber in OCT (optic coherence tomography); bilateral and reticular papillary lesions with yellowish-color in the neck region (plucked chicken appearance); presence of bleeding foci in fundus; and nephrocalcinosis in kidneys. In light of these symptoms, the patient was diagnosed with pseudoxantoma elasticum. Skin biopsy confirmed the pseudoxantoma elasticum diagnose. PXE is an uncommon, hereditary disease. Early diagnosis of pseudoxantoma elasticum cases, is important for minimalizing systemic complications and informing the other family members through genetic counseling.

Keywords: Pseudoxantoma elasticum; Upper gastrointestinal hemorrhage