Rib plasmacytoma and IgA multiple myeloma with hyperviscosity syndrome.

Solitary bone plasmacytoma (SPB) can progress to generalized myeloma if not treated early. The elderly population is increasing and delays in diagnosis of plasma cell malignancies are frequent among them. Hyperglobulinemia of multiple myeloma (MM) plays a role in hyperviscosity syndrome (HVS). A 65-year-old woman with hypertension and diabetes mellitus was admitted due to loss of appetite, muscle weakness, breathlessness and discrete expectoration, without fever. Chest X-ray showed an abnormal shadow projection on the right lung field, while computed tomography (CT) revealed an osteolytic mass at the sixth rib. There were more than 50% of plasma cells in the bone marrow samples and high IgA levels according to serum electrophoresis. Rib plasmacytoma and overt IgA-producing myeloma with HVS were diagnosed, but treatment was unsuccessful. Case studies may enhance the awareness about this ominous condition, which may develop unnoticed, particularly in elderly patients with renal insufficiency, and can pose difficulties with diagnosis in primary care settings.

Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome coexistent with Dengue.

Dengue is an arthropod-borne disease caused by viruses of Flaviviridae family. It poses a major public health burden in tropical and sub-tropical regions. Clinical features of dengue vary from a mild flu-like disease and rash, to a potentially lethal haemorrhagic fever or shock syndrome. Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome is a rodent-born disease emerging in the American continent and is caused by viruses of the Bunyaviridae family. Potential reservoirs of these agents were described in Brazilian Central Plateau. Dengue infection is transmitted by mosquitoes, while hantaviruses are acquired by contact or inhalation of aerosolised excreta of infected rodents. Dengue and hantavirus infections have also been considered as emerging public health problems in some Indian areas; moreover, other infections mixed with dengue have been documented. The case of a Brazilian patient with hantavirus pulmonary syndrome and serologic evidence of dengue infection is described.