Diagnostic value of bone marrow biopsy in patients with renal disease secondary to familial Mediterranean fever.

Systemic AA type amyloidosis with renal involvement is the major cause of morbidity and mortality in patients with familial Mediterranean fever (FMF). A histopathological examination is essential to achieve a definite diagnosis in systemic amyloidosis. The diagnostic yield of the procedure varies according to the biopsy site and renal biopsy has the highest yield. On the other hand this procedure has its own complications and requires hospitalization of the patient. Alternative biopsy sites have been proposed with varying degrees of sensitivity and morbidity to reduce the morbidity and mortality of solid organ biopsies. We performed bone marrow biopsies in 39 patients with FMF who had different stages of renal disease. Thirty-one (79.5%) of the 39 specimens showed significant perivascular amyloid infiltration when stained with crystal violet and Congo red. An immunoperoxidase stain with a monoclonal antibody proved that these deposits were AA type amyloid. We suggest that bone marrow biopsy can be utilized for a safe and quick diagnosis of systemic amyloidosis in patients with FMF and renal disease.