Relapsing polychondritis--a report on two Chinese patients with severe costal chondritis

Relapsing polychondritis is a rare multisystemic connective tissue disorder found mainly in Caucasians. Oriental patients with relapsing polychondritis are uncommon. We report 2 Chinese patients with relapsing polychondritis who had severe laryngotracheal narrowing requiring tracheostomy. Unlike most patients, there was marked costal chondritis resulting in depression of the anterior chest wall with minimal involvement of other joints. One of the patients had treatment with prednisolone, dapsone, azathioprine, cyclophosphamide and cyclosporin A at various stages of the disease without significant remission of the disease.