masquerading rheumatoid arthritis

Reactivation of herpes zoster ophthalmicus (HZO) can present as corneal involvement without any precedent neuralgia or characteristic herpetic rash. This form of HZO can be the first manifestation of reactivation of varicella zoster virus and can masquerade as peripheral ulcerative keratitis. A 45-year-old male treated for necrotizing fasciitis (NF) one month back presented with painful diminution of vision in the right eye (RE) for two weeks without any associated vesicular rash or neuralgia. On examination, best-corrected visual acuity in RE was 2/60 with non-marginal upper lid defect, and multiple linear contracture scars involving the upper lid, right temple, and preauricular region...

Leprosy and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) often mimic clinical features of connective tissue disease (CTD). They can present such as lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, scleroderma, or overlap syndromes and it sometimes creates confusion about the diagnosis. Serology may not be enough to differentiate the two and effective tissue biopsies are often the answer. We report the case of a 38-year-old female, who presented clinically with features of multisystem involvement suspected to be CTD, but was found to have dual infection: HIV and borderline tuberculoid leprosy...

Methotrexate (MTX) may induce immunosuppression and facilitate the onset of lymphoproliferative disorders (LPD). Most cases of MTX-LPD occur in patients with rheumatoid arthritis; the incidence is high in Japan. Vitreoretinal lymphoma (VRL) is a rare non-Hodgkin's lymphoma that can masquerade as steroid-resistant chronic uveitis, leading to fatal diagnostic delay. A 68-year-old woman exhibited optic disc swelling and retinal vasculitis causing floaters in the right eye. She was undergoing long-term MTX treatment for rheumatoid arthritis; she previously had been diagnosed with MTX-LPD, which regressed upon discontinuation of MTX...

BACKGROUND: This case reveals a novel presentation of drug rash with eosinophilia and systemic symptoms syndrome that mimics a lymphoproliferative disorder. The heterogeneous clinical presentation of drug rash with eosinophilia and systemic symptoms syndrome gives rise to a broad differential diagnosis that includes a multitude of infectious, inflammatory, and autoimmune conditions. This patient was diagnosed with drug rash with eosinophilia and systemic symptoms syndrome 4 weeks after starting sulfasalazine and 5 weeks after starting hydroxychloroquine for rheumatoid arthritis...

With increased use of disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs, screening for latent tuberculosis infection is more important than ever. However, even with appropriate screening, reactivation of tuberculosis can occur in patients who have had significant epidemiological exposures. Herein, we present a case of a seventy-four-year-old woman with severe rheumatoid arthritis on long-term disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs who developed cryptic miliary tuberculosis. Histopathological findings from an abdominal lymph node biopsy showed caseating granulomas which were initially attributed to her rheumatoid arthritis given screening tests and sputum acid-fast cultures were negative for tuberculosis...

Hansen's disease, a chronic granulomatous disease, classically has cutaneous and neurological manifestations. Musculoskeletal manifestation of the disease is underappreciated. This case report conveys that musculoskeletal manifestation of the disease should not be missed, as sometimes it is the only presenting symptom, to avoid delay in correct diagnosis and treatment.

The complexities of dealing with rheumatic diseases in tropical countries are diverse and likely due to limited health care infrastructure, lack of diagnostic and therapeutic facilities, impact of dominant prevailing diseases, and the challenges of differentiating from infectious and non-infectious disease mimics. Several tropical diseases present with musculoskeletal and rheumatic manifestations and often pose a diagnostic dilemma to rheumatologists. The diagnosis is often delayed or the disease is misdiagnosed, leading to poor patient outcomes...

A typical presentation of septic arthritis (SA) includes pain, swelling, and erythema in the affected joint. Often, patients complain of inability to bear weight on the affected limb. However, some patients may present with subtle symptoms of pain and no fever or obvious swelling of the affected limb thus making the initial suspicion of SA low. Especially, patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) may present with polyarticular joint pain and initial synovial fluid analysis from an infected joint not consistent with overt septic arthritis...

Tuberculosis is an airborne multisystemic disease which primarily infects the lungs. Isolated tuberculous arthritis is rare. We present a case of a 41-year-old woman with a known case of lupus nephritis class IV who complained of pain and swelling over her left ankle joint for several months. She was treated for rheumatoid arthritis and was started with immunosuppressive agents. However, she did not improve with treatment and was later diagnosed with tuberculous arthritis based on a molecular study from joint aspiration...

The diagnosis and management of postoperative nerve injury can be a challenging and frustrating proposition for the patient, surgeon, and anesthesia provider. Unfortunately, in many cases, the true etiology is never elucidated and the injury is ascribed to positioning or a nerve block with "expectant management" being the order of the day, which can result in persistent disability for the patient. However, there is a rare subset of disorders affecting the nervous system that can masquerade as a peripheral nerve injury that warrants further investigation of risk factors and co-morbidities when other common causes of nerve injury are ruled out...

Pulmonary angiitis is a small vessel vasculitis commonly reported in granulomatosis with polyangiitis (GPA) but is rarely attributed to angiostrongyliasis. We report a case of a patient with well-controlled rheumatoid arthritis, who was treated for GPA based on lung biopsy results with glucocorticoids (GC). Upon re-review of the initial pathology, along with peripheral eosinophilia and history of recent travel, the patient was eventually diagnosed with angiostrongylus-like nematode infection. GCs were subsequently discontinued and instead, the patient was treated with anthelmintics with complete resolution of symptoms...

Paraneoplastic arthritides are a group of inflammatory rheumatic syndromes induced by an occult and manifest malignancy, characterized by a wide range of musculoskeletal signs and symptoms that masquerade other rheumatic diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis. Although the pathogenesis of paraneoplastic arthritides is unknown, immune-mediated mechanisms can induce a paraneoplastic syndrome, with a dominant feature the polyarthritis. Common entities of paraneoplastic arthritides include paraneoplastic polyarthritis, hypertrophic osteoarthropathy, remitting seronegative symmetrical synovitis with pitting edema, palmar fasciitis and polyarthritis, and polyarthritis and panniculitis associated with pancreatic carcinoma...

Infective endocarditis (IE) is associated with high inflammatory markers including rheumatoid factor (RF). Diagnosis can be difficult when it presents with musculoskeletal symptoms, and a raised RF titer as it points towards an autoimmune joint disease. It is imperative to rule out IE by echocardiography and blood cultures. A 42-year-old male with type two diabetes mellitus presented to our hospital with severe back pain, hemoptysis, mild pain in multiple joints, and low-grade fever for three months. He was previously seen by a rheumatologist and was clinically diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis along with a RF level of 505...

The primary hypertrophic osteoarthropathy (PHOA) (pachydermoperiostosis) is a rare genetic/hereditary disease characterized by skin changes (pachydermia), clubbing of fingers and periosteal thickening (periostitis) with sub-periosteal new bone formation. Here we describe a case of an adolescent male who presented with clubbing and polyarthralgia. On evaluation with scintigraphy and SPECT-CT, he was diagnosed to have incomplete form of PHOA(skeletal manifestations without skin changes). The identification of incomplete form of primary hypertrophic osteoarthropathy which can be easily misdiagnosed as rheumatoid arthritis is discussed here...

BACKGROUND Adult-onset Still's disease (AOSD) is a rare multi-systemic inflammatory disorder of unknown etiology characterized by spiking fever, characteristic rash, and arthritis. It often associates with high serum ferritin levels. CASE REPORT An 88-year-old woman had fever of over 39°C without response to extended-spectrum antibiotics for 6 days. She had non-specific erythema with infiltration on her trunk. She had leukocytosis with neutrophilia of 80%, mild hepatic dysfunction, normal level of rheumatoid factor and antinuclear antibody, thrombocytopenia, elevated d-dimer and soluble interleukin2 receptor, extremely high serum ferritin (78 662 ng/mL), and splenomegaly...

Ticks are tiny crawling bugs in the spider family that feed by sucking blood from animals. They are second only to mosquitoes as vectors of human disease, both infectious and toxic. Infected ticks spread over a hundred diseases, some of which are fatal if undetected. They spread the spirochete (which multiplies in the insect's gut) with a subsequent bite to the next host. We describe the only reported cases of peri ocular tick bite from India that presented to us within a span of 3 days and its management. Due suspicion and magnification of the lesions revealed the ticks which otherwise masqueraded as small skin tags/moles on gross examination...

Symptoms of inflammatory arthritis such as rheumatoid arthritis (RA) can overlap with fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS). Moreover, FMS and RAcan coexist. Hence, the diagnosis of low intensity, antibody-negative RAmay present a challenge. Here, we present the case of a middle-aged woman thought to have FMS, osteoarthritis and osteoporosis for 4 years prior to being diagnosed as seronegative RAon musculoskeletal ultrasound (MSKUS). Targeted therapy with etanercept led to a complete clinical response and normalization of previously elevated C-reactive protein...

Multiple myeloma can rarely mimic seronegative rheumatoid arthritis (RA). We report a 55-year-old woman who presented with longstanding deforming polyarthritis with extensive subcutaneous nodules, tenosynovitis, anti-cyclic citrullinated peptide positivity and mononeuritis multiplex. Even though the clinical picture was consistent with seropositive RA, the absence of bone erosion or joint space narrowing on hand and knee radiographs led us to question the diagnosis of RA. Further investigation revealed a diagnosis of multiple myeloma with cutaneous amyloid deposits, based on serum immunofixation, bone marrow aspiration and biopsy of a subcutaneous nodule...

Hyperparathyroidism is a complex clinical syndrome characterized by dysfunction in the metabolism of bone, calcium and phosphorus. Rheumatologic manifestations are common amongst patients with hyperparathyroidism. We report a 50-year-old woman with hypercalcemia, lytic bone lesions and inflammatory arthritis of both hands that were not resolved after parathyroidectomy. Laboratory evidence of elevated erythrocyte sedimentation rate, positive C-reactive protein (CRP) and high titers of anti-CCP and rheumatoid factor was diagnostic of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) according to European League Against Rheumatism criteria...

The purpose of the study was to identify the clinical and etiological profile of uveitis at the apex institute for eye care in India. This is a prospective, prevalence study. 980 consecutive patients with uveitis referred to uvea clinic, Dr. RP Centre for Ophthalmic Sciences (Ophthalmology division, All India Institute of Medical Sciences). Demographic data of each patient were noted and a thorough ocular examination including slit lamp examination and dilated fundus evaluation was carried out. OCT and fluorescein angiography were undertaken whenever indicated...