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Definition of Histiocytosis, Hand-Schuller-Christian
Medically reviewed by Min Clinic Staff | Updated: January 2026
Histiocytosis, Hand-Schuller-Christian: A disease in which histiocytes start to multiply and attack the tissues or organs of the patient. The disease usually affects children age 2 to 5, less often older children and adults. The most frequent sites of bony involvement are the flat bones of the skull, ribs, pelvis, and scapula (wing bone). Chronic otitis media due to involvement of the mastoid and the temporal bone is common. Diabetes insipidus affects some patients, mainly children who have systemic disease. Up to 40% of children with it have short stature.
Hand-Schuller-Christian disease is a form of Langerhans cell histiocytosis.