Elephantiasis
| Elephantiasis | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Elephantiasis of the legs due to filariasis | |
| Specialty | Infectious disease, general surgery |
| Symptoms | Swelling of the skin |
Elephantiasis, often incorrectly called elephantitis, is the enlargement and hardening of limbs or body parts due to tissue swelling (edema).[1][2] It is characterised by edema, hypertrophy, and fibrosis of skin and subcutaneous tissues, due to obstruction of lymphatic vessels (lymphedema).[2] It may affect the genitalia.[2] The term elephantiasis is often used in reference to symptoms caused by parasitic worm infections,[1][2] but may refer to a variety of diseases that swell parts of the subject's body to exceptionally massive proportions.[2]
Cause
[edit]Some conditions that present with elephantiasis include the following:
- Elephantiasis nostras, due to longstanding chronic lymphangitis.[3]
- Elephantiasis tropica (known as lymphatic filariasis), caused by a number of parasitic nematode worms, particularly Wuchereria bancrofti. More than 120 million people, mostly in Africa and Southeast Asia, are affected.[4]
- Nonfilarial elephantiasis (or podoconiosis), an immune disease affecting the lymph vessels[5]
- Leishmaniasis[2]
- Elephantiasis, Grade 3 lymphedema, which may occur in people with breast cancer[6]
- Genital elephantiasis, result of lymphogranuloma venereum[7]
- Proteus syndrome,[8] a genetic disorder best known as the condition possibly experienced by Joseph Merrick, the so-called Elephant Man[9]
Other causes may include the following:
- Repeated streptococcal infection[2]
- Lymphadenectomy[2]
- Hereditary birth defects[2]
- Pretibial myxedema
Other diseases, such as the rare Klippel–Trénaunay syndrome, can initially be misdiagnosed as elephantiasis.
Elephantiasis may have been the skin condition suffered by Biblical character Job.[10]
References
[edit]- 1 2 "Definition of ELEPHANTIASIS". Merriam-webster.com. Retrieved 2018-06-28.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 "elephantiasis", The Free Dictionary, retrieved 2018-06-28
- ↑ Hollander, David I.; Halwig, J. Michael; McKinney, Peter; Patterson, Roy (April 1985). "Elephantiasis nostras 1984". Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology. 75 (4): 450–451. doi:10.1016/S0091-6749(85)80016-6. ISSN 0091-6749.
- ↑ Carlson, Emily (27 March 2013). "Taking the 'Bite' Out of Vector-Borne Diseases - Inside Life Science Series - National Institute of General Medical Sciences". publications.nigms.nih.gov. Archived from the original on 28 July 2018. Retrieved 29 November 2016.
- ↑ Wanji, Samuel; Deribe, Kebede; Minich, Jessica; Debrah, Alexander Y.; Kalinga, Akili; Kroidl, Inge; Luguet, Ambre; Hoerauf, Achim; Ritter, Manuel (2021-07-01). "Podoconiosis – From known to unknown: Obstacles to tackle". Acta Tropica. 219 105918. doi:10.1016/j.actatropica.2021.105918. ISSN 0001-706X.
- ↑ "Lymphedema". National Cancer Institute. 29 May 2015. Retrieved 29 November 2016.
- ↑ Rawla, Prashanth; Thandra, Krishna C.; Limaiem, Faten (2026), "Lymphogranuloma Venereum(Archived)", StatPearls, Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing, PMID 30726047, retrieved 2026-07-26
- ↑ Tibbles, J. A.; Cohen, M. M. (1986-09-13). "The Proteus syndrome: the Elephant Man diagnosed". British Medical Journal. 293 (6548): 683–685. doi:10.1136/bmj.293.6548.683. ISSN 0267-0623. PMC 1341524. PMID 3092979.
- ↑ Rocha, Ritha de Cássia Capelato; Estrella, Mariani Paulino Soriano; Amaral, Danielle Mechereffe do; Barbosa, Angela Marques; Abreu, Marilda Aparecida Milanez Morgado de (2017). "Proteus syndrome". Anais Brasileiros De Dermatologia. 92 (5): 717–720. doi:10.1590/abd1806-4841.20174496. ISSN 1806-4841. PMC 5674710. PMID 29166516.
- ↑ "Jobs Disease from the McClintock and Strong Biblical Cyclopedia". Biblicalcyclopedia.com. Retrieved July 15, 2026.
External links
[edit]- . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. VIII (9th ed.). 1878. p. 126.
- "Lymphatic filariasis". World Health Organization. Retrieved 1 June 2018.
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