Decreased hepatic uptake of gallium-67 citrate in haemophagocytic syndrome occurring concomitantly with capillary leak syndrome.

We describe a 4-year-old girl with haemophagocytic syndrome (HPS) in whom hepatic gallium-67 citrate (Ga-67) uptake was suppressed when the disease was in its acute phase and returned to normal when the disease was in remission. The prominent clinical feature of this case was the occurrence of systemic capillary leak syndrome (CLS). Because extravasation of plasma proteins may be the result of vascular endothelial injury in CLS, loss of hepatic Ga-67 uptake may reflect insult to the hepatic sinusoidal endothelium. This case suggests a possible role of sinusoidal endothelial cells in the mechanism of hepatic Ga-67 uptake and indicates the need for further study of Ga-67 uptake in patients with HPS.