Hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis associated with an IgG Cold agglutinin

Hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (HLH) is a life-threatening disease eventually caused or reactivated by a viral infection, which can also lead to the production of cold agglutinins (CA). The nature of these autoantibodies is usually an IgM, less frequently an IgA or IgG, they agglutinate red blood cells at low temperatures. They can interfere with hematological parameters causing interpretation difficulties. We report a case of a 4-year-old boy who developed an IgG CA during recurrent HLH reactivated by EBV infection. The purpose of this observation is to underline HLH criteria and to analyze CA interference as well as its biological and clinical characteristics. (C) 2018 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.