Infectious Splenomegaly

Hyperplasia of the spleen with infectious disease may be acute or chronic. Acute hyperplastic splenitis (acute splenic tumor) occurs with septicemia or in the presence of severe pyogenic infections. The spleen is enlarged and soft. The follicles may be enlarged and phagocytosis is active.
In protozoan and bacterial diseases that affect the reticuloendothelial system, such as visceral leishmaniasis, African trypanosomiasis, malaria, etc., the enlarged spleen acts as a clearing house for phagocytosis and is engorged with parasites and para­sitized macrophages.With chronic splenic hyperplasia found in advanced stages of syphilis, tuberculosis, brucellosis, malaria, leishmaniasis, trypanosomiasis, schistosomiasis and infectious ar­thritis (Felty's syndrome) there is increase of both the lymphoid and connective tissue elements. The capsule is often thick and opaque. There may be endothelial hyper­plasia and hyalin changes in the arterioles. The infectious diseases of the spleen and reticuloendothelial system are:

(1)Infectious mono nucleosis
(2)Brucellosis
(3)Sarcoidosis
(4)Visceral leish maniasis
(5)Malaria
(6)Bartonellosis
(7) Histoplasmosis
(8)Toxoplasmosis
(9)Schistosomiasis
(10) Trypanosomiasis(11)Relapsing fever
(12)Melioidosis and Glanders