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Freire de Carvalho, J., & Amoedo Martinez, A. T. Varicella Arthritis in a Young Patient. Journal of Mosaic of Autoimmunity. 2025. doi: Retrieved from https://www.sciltp.com/journals/jmai/article/view/625
Volume 1, Issue 1, 2025
Copyright (c) 2025 by the authors.
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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Case Report

Varicella Arthritis in a Young Patient

Jozélio Freire de Carvalho 1,* Ana Tereza Amoedo Martinez 2,3

1 Núcleo de Pesquisa em Doenças Crônicas não Transmissíveis (NUPEC), School of Nutrition, Federal University of Bahia, Salvador 40170-110, Brazil

2 Rheumatology Department, Universidade Estadual de Feira de Santana, Feira de Santana 44036-900, Brazil

3 Novaclin, Grupo CITA, Salvador 40750-322, Brazil

* Correspondence: jotafc@gmail.com; Tel.: +55-71-99187-1169

Received: 27 November 2024; Revised: 12 February 2025; Accepted: 24 February 2025; Published: 25 February 2025

Abstract: Varicella arthritis (VA) is a very rare complication of Varicella zoster virus infection, typically presenting as mainly monoarthritis in pediatric populations. This report describes the case of a previously healthy 12-year-old boy who developed arthritis following varicella infection. Clinical evaluation and laboratory findings confirmed the diagnosis of VA, characterized by arthritis of the right knee, mild anemia, leukocytosis, thrombocytosis, and elevated inflammatory markers. Autoimmune and infectious serologies excluded other etiologies. The patient was treated with meloxicam, leading to the complete resolution of symptoms and normalization of inflammatory markers within six weeks. This case underscores the importance of considering VA in children presenting with varicella infection, confirmed by serology, and develops arthritis and highlights the favorable prognosis with appropriate management. Molecular mimicry, immune complex deposition, and pro-inflammatory cytokine release are possible contributing factors to the development of VA.

Keywords:

varicella arthritis autoimmunity

References

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