[Immunologic manifestations in myelodysplastic syndrome]

We describe three patients with primary myelodysplastic syndrome and immunological manifestations. One had painful cutaneous plaques, arthritis and peripheral neuropathy, another showed cutaneous vasculitis, and a third had Sweet's syndrome. All patients responded dramatically to steroids. Before treatment the patient with Sweet's syndrome had high serum levels of interleukin 6 (IL-6), which were reduced to zero after treatment with steroids. Myelodysplastic syndrome should be considered when evaluating patients with immunological or rheumatic manifestations associated with one or more cytopenias.