Novel mutation identified in severe early-onset tumor necrosis factor receptor-associated periodic syndrome: a case report

BACKGROUND: Tumor Necrosis Factor Receptor-Associated Periodic Syndrome (TRAPS) is the second most common heritable autoinflammatory disease, typically presenting in pre-school aged children with fever episodes lasting 1–3 weeks. Systemic symptoms can include rash, myalgia, ocular inflammation, and serositis. CASE PRESENTATION: Here we report an unusual presentation of TRAPS in a 7 month old girl who presented with only persistent fever. She was initially diagnosed with incomplete Kawasaki Disease and received IVIG and infliximab; however, her fevers quickly recurred. Subsequent testing revealed a urinary tract infection, but she did not improve despite appropriate therapy. As fever continued, she developed significant abdominal distension with imaging concerning for appendicitis, followed by hyperthermia and hemodynamic instability. Given her protracted clinical course and maternal history of a poorly defined inflammatory condition, an autoinflammatory disease was considered. Therapy with anakinra was initiated, resulting in rapid resolution of fever and normalization of inflammatory markers. She was found to have a previously unreported mutation, Thr90Pro, in the TNFRSF1A gene associated with TRAPS. This novel mutation was also confirmed in the patient’s mother and maternal uncle. CONCLUSIONS: This report reviews a severe case of TRAPS in infancy associated with a novel mutation, Thr90Pro, in the TNFRSF1A gene, and emphasizes that autoinflammatory disease should be considered in the differential of infants with fever of unknown origin. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12887-017-0856-2) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.