Kikuchi-Fujimoto in the light of the COVID-19: infection and vaccination. A systematic review.

Publication date: Jul 03, 2025

The association between SARS-CoV-2 infection, COVID-19 vaccination, and the development of autoimmune diseases such as the Kikuchi-Fujimoto disease (KFD) is currently unknown. This study aims to review, synthesize, and analyze the current available evidence on the occurrence of KFD associated with both SARS-CoV-2 infection and COVID-19 vaccination. Case report, case series, and observational studies were included. Narrative review studies, systematic reviews, meta-analyses, etc. , were excluded. A selective bibliographic search was performed in the following databases: PubMed, Scopus, EMBASE, and Web of Science until January 26, 2025. The Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) tool was used to assess the risk of bias and quality of the studies. The SPSS Statistics tool (version 25. 0; IBM Corp. , Armonk, N. Y. , USA) was used for statistical analysis. A total of 52 patients were reported in the included studies. Of these, 16 developed new-onset KFD as a complication of SARS-CoV-2 infection, while 36 presented with the disease as an adverse effect of COVID-19 vaccination. Cases associated with infection had a mean age of 27. 25 +/- 16. 87 years, and the most frequent clinical manifestations were fever, fatigue, cough, and weight loss. On the other hand, cases related to vaccination had a mean age of 30. 8 +/- 12. 63 years, with a greater association to mRNA technology vaccines, particularly Pfizer-BioNTech (75%) and Moderna (11. 1%). Most cases were related to the administration of the first dose (75%). There was a predominance of female sex and the presence of cervical lymphadenopathy in both groups. There were no cases of mortality or unfavorable evolution; on the contrary, almost all patients evolved favorably after timely diagnosis and adequate treatment. SARS-CoV-2 infection could represent a new causative agent of KF disease. However, its occurrence as an adverse effect of COVID-19 vaccination is rare and infrequent, which may be attributed to limited case reporting and the relative novelty of the disease. PROSPERO CRD42024522470.

Semantics

Original Article