[A case of malignant reticulosis with pericardial effusion and central nervous system involvement]

A 64-year-old man was admitted with complaints of lethargy, malaise, weight loss and transient left-hemiplegia and aphasia. Initial physical and laboratory findings showed splenomegaly and pericardial effusion. During his hospital stay, his mental status deteriorated progressively. The characteristic pathology of malignant reticulosis was noted at autopsy. Microscopic examination of the brain demonstrated accumulations of malignant histiocytic cells confined within small vessels and subsequent multiple hemorrhages and necroses in the gray matter. Malignant reticulosis with antemortem manifestations of pericardial effusion and central nervous system involvement is rare.