OBJECTIVE: To study the articular inflammatory manifestations of leprosy. METHODS: Sixty patients with leprosy from a public clinic in São Paulo, Brazil, participated in a study regarding their articular manifestations. The diagnosis and classification of leprosy were established by the clinical picture, skin smears, skin biopsy, and delayed hypersensitivity test to Mycobacterium leprae antigens (Mitsuda test). According to the Madrid and Ridley-Jopling classifications, 46 patients had lepromatous leprosy, 7 had borderline leprosy, 4 had tuberculoid leprosy, and 3 had indeterminate leprosy. History, general and articular examinations, and roentgenograms were employed and complemented in several cases by scintigraphic examinations with technetium methylene diphosphonate and computed tomographic studies. RESULTS: Three patients were excluded from study due to an association with a rheumatic disease. Among the 57 remaining patients, 44 had peripheral arthritis characterized by involvement of small joints (23/44), large joints (4/44), or both (17/44). The mean duration of arthritis was 11 years (range 1 mo to 51 yrs). Arthritis was detected in all subtypes of patients with leprosy. Supplementary radiological evaluation established the extent of inflammation and diagnosis of sacroiliitis. The diagnosis of sacroiliitis, based on the presence of sclerosis, erosions, and narrowing of the cartilage space in the sacroiliac joints, was established in 35 of 55 radiographs. Sacroiliitis varied from grade I to III, according to the Bennet and Wood classification, and was bilateral in most cases (30/35). There was no significant correlation between low back pain and the finding of sacroiliitis. CONCLUSION: Articular inflammatory manifestations may exist in patients with different forms of leprosy, and can follow a chronic course. In addition, sacroiliitis is a common, previously unrecognized manifestation in patients with leprosy.
OBJECTIVE: To study the articular inflammatory manifestations of leprosy. METHODS: Sixty patients with leprosy from a public clinic in São Paulo, Brazil, participated in a study regarding their articular manifestations. The diagnosis and classification of leprosy were established by the clinical picture, skin smears, skin biopsy, and delayed hypersensitivity test to Mycobacterium leprae antigens (Mitsuda test). According to the Madrid and Ridley-Jopling classifications, 46 patients had lepromatous leprosy, 7 had borderline leprosy, 4 had tuberculoid leprosy, and 3 had indeterminate leprosy. History, general and articular examinations, and roentgenograms were employed and complemented in several cases by scintigraphic examinations with technetium methylene diphosphonate and computed tomographic studies. RESULTS: Three patients were excluded from study due to an association with a rheumatic disease. Among the 57 remaining patients, 44 had peripheral arthritis characterized by involvement of small joints (23/44), large joints (4/44), or both (17/44). The mean duration of arthritis was 11 years (range 1 mo to 51 yrs). Arthritis was detected in all subtypes of patients with leprosy. Supplementary radiological evaluation established the extent of inflammation and diagnosis of sacroiliitis. The diagnosis of sacroiliitis, based on the presence of sclerosis, erosions, and narrowing of the cartilage space in the sacroiliac joints, was established in 35 of 55 radiographs. Sacroiliitis varied from grade I to III, according to the Bennet and Wood classification, and was bilateral in most cases (30/35). There was no significant correlation between low back pain and the finding of sacroiliitis. CONCLUSION: Articular inflammatory manifestations may exist in patients with different forms of leprosy, and can follow a chronic course. In addition, sacroiliitis is a common, previously unrecognized manifestation in patients with leprosy.
Authors: Claudia Andrea Helling; Ana Locursio; Maria Elena Manzur; Maria Leticia Sormani de Fonseca Journal: Clin Rheumatol Date: 2005-09-21 Impact factor: 2.980
Authors: Rachel Bertolani do Espírito Santo; Rachel A Serafim; Jurama Barros Gueiros Bitran; Simon M Collin; Patrícia Deps Journal: Am J Trop Med Hyg Date: 2020-06 Impact factor: 2.345
Authors: Haneen Adel Al-Raqum; S S Uppal; Rana Abdul Rahman El Abdalghani; Ibrahim Lasheen Journal: Clin Rheumatol Date: 2005-10-25 Impact factor: 3.650