FMF - Familial Mediterranean Fever is an autosomal recessive genetic disease. An accurate diagnosis is made by genetic testing.
The first attack of familial Mediterranean fever usually occurs in childhood or adolescence. Therefore, patients are mostly diagnosed during this period.
In familial Mediterranean fever, painful inflammation occurs in the abdomen, chest, pelvis, and joints. This is even more so during inflammatory seizures.
Symptoms such as fever, headache, and skin rashes may accompany inflammatory attacks.
FMF is caused by a mutation in a gene that controls inflammation in the body.
Mutations that cause FMF can occur at many different points in this gene, called the MEFV gene.
Arthritis symptoms can last for weeks. Patients pass the period between seizures without any symptoms.
This asymptomatic period can last for several days or years.
The MEFV gene responsible for the disease consists of 10 exons. Mutations occur mainly in exons 2, 3, 5 and 10.
