Atypical Borrelia garinii infection in an immunocompromised patient mimicking high-grade lymphoma

Victor Eiferman; Guillaume Le Guenno; Nathalie Boiret-Dupré; Bertrand Barres; Léa Luciani; Pierre Edouard Fournier

doi:10.1016/j.ijid.2022.04.062

Atypical Borrelia garinii infection in an immunocompromised patient mimicking high-grade lymphoma

Int J Infect Dis. 2022 Aug:121:102-104. doi: 10.1016/j.ijid.2022.04.062. Epub 2022 May 4.

Authors

Victor Eiferman¹, Guillaume Le Guenno², Nathalie Boiret-Dupré³, Bertrand Barres⁴, Léa Luciani⁵, Pierre Edouard Fournier⁶

Affiliations

¹ Aix-Marseille Université, IRD, APHM, SSA, VITROME, IHU-Méditerranée Infection, Marseille, France; IHU-Méditerranée Infection, Marseille, France. Electronic address: [email protected].
² Service de médecine interne, CHU Estaing, Clermont, Ferrand, France.
³ Service d'Hématologie biologique, CHU Estaing, Clermont, Ferrand, France.
⁴ Service de radio-nucléaire, Centre Jean Perrin, Clermont, Ferrand.
⁵ Laboratoire de microbiologie, IHU-Méditerranée Infection, APHM, Marseille, France.
⁶ Aix-Marseille Université, IRD, APHM, SSA, VITROME, IHU-Méditerranée Infection, Marseille, France; IHU-Méditerranée Infection, Marseille, France.

PMID: 35525526
DOI: 10.1016/j.ijid.2022.04.062

Abstract

We report an atypical Borrelia garinii infection in a patient who was immunocompromised. It was first suspected as a transformation of follicular lymphoma into high-grade lymphoma. Spirochetes were directly observed on a peripheral blood smear and the diagnosis was confirmed using molecular methods. The clinical presentation and the diagnosis are unique and contrast with the cases described in the literature in patients who are immunocompromised.

Keywords: Borrelia burgdorferi complex; Borrelia garinii; Immunocompromised; Lymphoma; PCR16s; Spirochete.

Publication types

Case Reports

MeSH terms

Borrelia burgdorferi Group*
Borrelia*
Humans
Immunocompromised Host
Lyme Disease* / diagnosis
Lymphoma, Non-Hodgkin*