Liver & intrahepatic bile ducts
Developmental anomalies / cysts
Reye syndrome
Author: Komal Arora, M.D.
Last author update: 1 May 2012
Last staff update: 24 September 2020
Copyright: 2002-2023, PathologyOutlines.com, Inc.
PubMed Search: Reye syndrome[TI] liver
Table of Contents
Definition / general | Microscopic (histologic) description | Positive stains | Electron microscopy description | Additional referencesCite this page: Arora K. Reye syndrome. PathologyOutlines.com website. https://www.pathologyoutlines.com/topic/liverreyes.html. Accessed September 27th, 2023.
Definition / general
- First described in 1963 by Reye and colleagues
- Encephalopathy and fatty degeneration of liver in children due to mitochondrial dysfunction after febrile viral-like illness treated with aspirin
- Disease has almost disappeared in children as aspirin use has declined for viral-like illnesses
- Current cases are more common in adults; in children are associated with inborn errors of urea cycle or fatty acid metabolism
- Changes similar to Jamaican vomiting sickness and valproic acid toxicity
Microscopic (histologic) description
- Diffuse, panlobular, microvesicular fatty change, no necrosis, no inflammation
Positive stains
- Fat stains
Electron microscopy description
- Enlarged, pleomorphic mitochondria with expanded matrix and fewer mitochondrial dense bodies
Additional references
