Taiwanese patient with recurrent polyserositis: report of a case

A 26-year-old man had suffered from recurrent abdominal pain, ascites and arthralgia since childhood. The symptoms occurred usually during the winter, and each attack lasted for two to three days. Initially, the frequency was about once a year, but it had increased to once every one to four months after an exploratory laparotomy carried out four years ago. Leukocytosis accompanied each episode. Many laboratory examinations and imaging studies failed to show pathologic lesions. Laparoscopic examination revealed only yellowish ascites with a hyperemic mesentery and omentum. There were never any sequelae after the attacks. After prophylaxis with colchicine 0.6 mg three times a day, no more attacks occurred. Familial Mediterranean fever (familial paroxysmal polyserositis) was the most likely diagnosis. Recognizing this disease entity in Taiwanese patients may help to avoid unnecessary operations.