Henoch-Schönlein Purpura

Fast Facts

HSP is usually self-limited. Therefore, treatment is not indicated in many cases, and full recovery is the rule.
HSP is more common in children than adults, but has a tendency to be more severe when it occurs in adults.
In a small minority of cases, HSP can cause severe kidney or bowel disease.

First Description

Dr. William Heberden, a London physician, described the first cases of Henoch-Schönlein [ Hee? nock - Shirn? line ] purpura (HSP) in 1801. In describing HSP, Heberden wrote of a 5-year old boy who “…was seized with pains and swellings in various parts…He sometimes had pains in his belly with vomiting…and the urine was tinged with blood. Presently, the skin of his leg was all over full of bloody points” (purpura). The young boy suffered all four disease hallmarks of HSP: arthritis, gastrointestinal involvement, kidney inflammation, and purpura. Johann Schönlein (1837) and Edouard Henoch (1874) reported additional cases decades after Heberden. They recognized that the disorder often followed upper respiratory tract infections and was not always self-limited, sometimes progressing to serious kidney involvement.

Who gets Henoch-Schönlein Purpura (the “typical” patient)?

Usually, HSP affects a child shortly after an upper respiratory infection has resolved.
HSP is the most common form of vasculitis in children, with an annual incidence on the order of 140 cases/million persons. The mean age of patients with HSP is 5.9 years.

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Vasculitis: MedlinePlus

Vasculitis

Also called: Angiitis

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Vasculitis is an inflammation of the blood vessels. It happens when the body's immune system attacks the blood vessel by mistake. The cause is often unknown. Vasculitis can affect arteries, veins and capillaries. Arteries are vessels that carry blood from the heart to the body's organs. Veins are the vessels that carry blood back to the heart. Capillaries are tiny blood vessels that connect the small arteries and veins.
When a blood vessel becomes inflamed, it can

Narrow, making it more difficult for blood to get through
Close off completely so that blood can't get through
Stretch and weaken so much that it bulges and may burst and cause dangerous bleeding inside the body

Symptoms of vasculitis can vary, but usually include fever, swelling and a general sense of feeling ill. The main goal of treatment is to stop the inflammation. Steroids and other medicines to stop inflammation are often helpful.

NIH: National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute