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Enlargement and hardening of body parts due to swelling From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Elephantiasis, often incorrectly called elephantitis, is the enlargement and hardening of limbs or body parts due to tissue swelling (edema).[1][2] It is characterised by edema, hypertrophy, and fibrosis of skin and subcutaneous tissues, due to obstruction of lymphatic vessels (lymphedema).[2] It may affect the genitalia.[2] The term elephantiasis is often used in reference to (symptoms caused by) parasitic worm infections,[1][2] but may refer to a variety of diseases that swell parts of the subject's body to exceptionally massive proportions.[2]
Elephantiasis | |
---|---|
Elephantiasis of the legs due to filariasis. | |
Specialty | Infectious disease, general surgery |
Symptoms | Swelling of the skin |
Some conditions that present with elephantiasis include:
Other causes may include:
Other diseases, such as the rare Klippel–Trénaunay syndrome, can initially be misdiagnosed as elephantiasis.
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