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We report herein on a case of severe Japanese spotted fever complicated by acute respiratory failure in Kobe City. A 70-year-old female presenting with general malaise and systematic erythema was admitted to our hospital in June, 2013. From her history and physical examination, she was found to be suffering from scleroderma and mild interstitial pneumonia. From admission, the patient was noted to have a fever of 39 degrees C accompanied by relative bradycardia. Physical examination revealed a black eschar on her right leg, making us suspect rickettsial infection since Kobe City is not an area predisposed to Japanese spotted fever. Three days after admission, her condition worsened and treatment with minocycline and levofloxacin was initiated in accordance with the treatment protocol for Japanese spotted fever. The following day, the patient developed acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and was put on a respirator. She gradually recovered with the antibiotic treatment and was discharged from the hospital 23 days after admission. The diagnosis of Japanese spotted fever was confirmed by conducting a polymerase chain reaction test on the eschar. Japanese spotted fever is noted to occur in any place other than Kobe City. Late diagnoses may result in aggravated cases of Japanese spotted fever, with the possibility of developing ARDS as a complication.

A 56-year-old man with bilateral swelling of lacrimal glands was admitted to our hospital. He was diagnosed as autoimmune pancreatitis with Mikulicz' s disease presenting the swelling of lacrimal glands, submandibular glands and the pancreas head and tail. Treatment with systemic prednisolone resulted in improvement of the swelling of these glands and pancreas. On the immunohistochemical examination, infiltration of CD4- and CD8-positive T lymphocytes was detected in the lacrimal gland, the submandibular gland, the gall bladder and the pancreas. Infiltration of IgG4-positive plasma cells was detected in the submandibular gland, the gall bladder and the pancreas. These results may suggest the presence of common etiology between autoimmune pancreatitis and Mikulicz' s disease.