[The results of the dynamic observation of patients with reactive Yersinia arthritis]

As many as 50 patients with reactive Yersinia arthritis were followed up. There were 4 men and 46 women. The mean age of the patients was 31.1 yr. The mean follow-up period was 30.8 months. In 72% of the cases, the disease was preceded by diarrhea. During the first examination, mono-oligoarthritis was detected in 78% of the patients. Extra-articular alterations (damage of muscles, ligaments, heart, skin changes, etc) were also recorded. The results of bacteriological analyses were positive in 22 out of the 50 patients. In 16 persons, Yersinia might be cultivated from the different biological media: blood, feces, urine, fauces, and synovial fluid. In 47 persons, arthritis took a chronic course. Persistence of antibodies of the types 03 and 09 seen for many years merits attention. Monoclonal anti-Yersinia antibodies were also detectable repeatedly. In 8 patients, in whom Yersinia were cultivated from a lot of the biological media, the disease ran an especially grave course. The role of circulating specific antibodies in patients with Yersinia arthritis and the trigger role they may play in the development of RA and ankylosing spondylarthritis requires further discussion.