Hemophagocytosis

What it means

Phagocytosis by macrophages of erythrocytes, leukocytes, platelets, and their precursors in bone marrow and other tissues.

Hemophagocytosis is a nonspecific phenotypic feature observed in several conditions including hemolytic anemia, malignant disease, infections, and hemophagocytic syndrome (also known as hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis, a rare hyperinflammatory syndrome caused by severe hypercytokinemia due to a highly stimulated but ineffective immune process).

Rare diseases that can present with this10

The range is how often this sign appears among people diagnosed with each disease — it is not a probability of having any of them. Many of these signs also occur in common, non-rare conditions, and Orphanet separately records 1 disease where this sign is specifically absent. A sign on this page is a conversation to have with a clinician, not a conclusion.

Part of the broader category