Cronkhite-Canada syndrome diagnosis in the absence of gastrointestinal polyps: a case report

Int J Surg Pathol. 2013 Dec;21(6):627-31. doi: 10.1177/1066896913480832. Epub 2013 Mar 19.

Abstract

A 66-year-old male patient presented with nausea, abdominal pain, occasional rectal bleeding, progressive dysgeusia, onicodystrophy, and alopecia. Endoscopic exam and biopsies revealed severe atrophy and diffuse marked edema of mucosa of stomach and duodenum. No evidence of polyps was found in any portion of the gastrointestinal tract. The diagnosis of Cronkhite-Canada syndrome (CCS) was rendered. The patient symptoms resolved completely after initiation of steroid treatment. This additional case of CCS illustrates how the diagnosis of CCS does not require the presence of polyps but is defined by the appreciation of the diffuse marked edema and atrophy of the gastrointestinal mucosa.

Keywords: Cronkhite–Canada syndrome; dysgeusia; gastrointestinal atrophy; onicodystrophy; polyposis.

Publication types

  • Case Reports

MeSH terms

  • Aged
  • Atrophy
  • Edema / pathology
  • Gastric Mucosa / pathology*
  • Humans
  • Intestinal Mucosa / pathology*
  • Intestinal Polyposis / pathology*
  • Intestinal Polyps / pathology
  • Male