Whipple’s Disease and Its Intestinal Mucosal Mimics

Recently, a male patient, presented to multiple medical specialties that eventually led to development of diarrhea and weight loss followed by eventual review by a gastroenterologist and a specific diagnosis of Whipple’s disease, a systemic disorder first described more than a century ago, but only recently recognized to be caused by Tropheryma whipplei . In this report, an updated review of this apparently very rare clinical disorder was done, including studies permitting a specific diagnosis of this disorder along with exclusion of other intestinal mucosal disorders that may potentially mimic Whipple’s disease.