Synovial xanthomatosis: are there clues to mechanisms for this rare disease?
H Ralph Schumacher1, Wassim G Habre, Christopher Friedrich
1Department of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA. schumacr@mail.med.upenn.edu
Abstract:
We report a 64-year-old man with arthritis and nodules to describe that this picture can be caused by normo-lipidemic xanthomas. Light and electron microscopy (EM) plus polymerase chain reaction (PCR) studies were performed for diagnosis and investigation. These showed features typical of xanthomas plus PCR and EM evidence of possible infection with Chlamydia pneumoniae as a pathogenetic mechanism deserving consideration. With such rare diseases, any clues to possible mechanisms seem important to record and thus to encourage future investigations. This uncommon cause of arthritis and nodules had been confused with rheumatoid arthritis by others in this case.
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