Mikulicz's disease and Mikulicz's syndrome: analysis of the original case report of 1892 in the light of current knowledge identifies a MALT lymphoma.

OBJECTIVE

To remove the confusion surrounding the terms "Mikulicz's disease" and "Mikulicz's syndrome" by discovering the nature of the disease that Mikulicz described.

STUDY

DESIGN

Investigation of the original 1892 publication by Mikulicz in the light of current knowledge.

RESULTS

Mikulicz described bilateral painless swellings of the lacrymal, major salivary, and minor salivary glands that were present for 14 months without a reduction in salivary flow before the patient, a man of 42 years, died. A print of a microscopical field of one of the submandibular glands contains a uniform lymphocytic infiltrate of centrocyte-like cells typical of MALT lymphoma, which is strongly supported by the reported clinical features.

CONCLUSION

Mikulicz published the first case report of a MALT lymphoma of salivary glands, and the terms "Mikulicz's disease" and "Mikulicz's syndrome" should no longer be used.