What is the cause of moderate spleen enlargement

Nowadays, many middle-aged people always have beer bellies, which has an impact on many organs of the body. The spleen is located in the abdomen. Because of the beer belly, many people may not easily find when their spleen is swollen, and sometimes they may even feel uncomfortable breathing. In fact, these may be caused by moderate enlargement of the spleen in the body. So, what is the cause of moderate enlargement of the spleen?

Its mechanism can be summarized into the following aspects:

1. Cell Infiltration

Splenomegaly caused by cell infiltration is seen in: various inflammatory cell infiltrations, eosinophil infiltrations, leukemia cell infiltrations, and various tumor cell infiltrations. Inflammatory cell infiltration is common in acute infectious diseases and is often accompanied by significant congestion of the spleen. Eosinophil infiltration is seen in eosinophilia and some lipid storage diseases; splenomegaly caused by infiltration of various leukemia cells is most obvious in chronic myeloid leukemia. The second is chronic lymphocytic leukemia; among acute leukemias, the lymphocytic type is more obvious, followed by acute granulocytic leukemia and acute monocytic leukemia. Infiltration of various tumor cells and malignant tumors of the spleen itself are rare, but malignant tumors originating from the lymphatic system, bone marrow, and intestines can invade the spleen. For example, lymphoma cells of malignant lymphoma may infiltrate the spleen. Among them, the spleen is more frequently affected in Hodgkin's disease, accounting for about 50%. Occasionally, there is simple Hodgkin's disease, which may manifest as infiltration of bone marrow cancer cells in splenomegaly and leukoma; infiltration of malignant tissue cells in malignant histiocytosis; metastasis of intestinal malignant tumors to the spleen, all of which may cause splenomegaly due to tumor cell infiltration.

2. Spleen stasis

The spleen is the largest blood storage organ in the body. Obstruction of blood return to the spleen due to various reasons can cause congestive enlargement of the spleen. Such as: portal hypertension due to cirrhosis/thrombosis of the portal vein and inferior vena cava, tumor emboli, congenital or acquired vascular malformations; right heart failure caused by various reasons, constrictive pericarditis or large pericardial effusion can all cause congestion and enlargement of the spleen.

3. Extramedullary Hematopoiesis

The spleen is a hematopoietic organ. In myeloproliferative diseases, the spleen restores its hematopoietic function and different degrees of extramedullary hematopoiesis occur, leading to splenomegaly. Extramedullary hematopoiesis is most obvious in myelofibrosis, and splenomegaly is also obvious.

4. Histiocyte proliferation

Histiocytosis is caused by abnormal proliferation of tissue cells, involving multiple organs throughout the body, especially the liver, spleen, lymph nodes, bone marrow, skin, thymus, etc., and may manifest as obvious enlargement of the spleen. For example, Lössler disease, Handelsblatt disease/chronic infectious diseases, kala-azar, connective tissue disease, felly, Still's disease, rheumatoid arthritis, etc. can cause splenic tissue cell hyperplasia and lead to splenomegaly.

5. Fibrosis

Due to long-term chronic stimulation caused by chronic congestion, chronic infection, cellular infiltration and other causes, abnormal proliferation of tissue cells leads to massive proliferation of splenic fibrous tissue, causing the spleen to enlarge and harden.

6. Metabolic disorders

Due to the lack or dysfunction of lipid metabolism enzymes, lipid metabolism disorders occur, and lipid deposition in tissues causes splenomegaly. For example, Gaucher disease is an autosomal recessive lipid metabolism disorder. It is because glucosylceramide and galactosylceramide cannot convert glucosylceramide into galactosylceramide, resulting in the accumulation of a large amount of ceramide in tissue cells. The chronic type manifests as splenomegaly. Niemann-Pick disease is a lipid metabolism disorder that affects the mononuclear macrophage tissue of internal organs. This disease may be caused by a lack of phospholipase, which causes phospholipase to accumulate in the macrophages of the liver, spleen, and nervous system, resulting in a significant enlargement of the spleen.

7. Tumors and cystic dilatation of the spleen itself Tumors and cystic dilatation of the spleen itself are rare, but there are reports of primary splenic malignant lymphoma. Cystic dilatation occurs in dermoid cysts, lymphangiocysts, and parasitic cysts (hydatid disease). Pseudocysts such as malaria, schistosomiasis, etc. can be caused by bleeding and inflammation. Caused by serum and other reasons.

As for the causes of moderate spleen enlargement, seven causes are introduced above. I hope everyone can understand that no matter what disease it is, we need to find the correct treatment measures based on the cause. It can be known that an enlarged spleen is related to many things in the body, so you must take good care of your body to avoid so many problems.