Reiter’s syndrome following intravesical Bacillus Calmette-Guerin therapy for bladder carcinoma: a report of five cases

Abstract

Reiter’s syndrome is known to be a rare severe adverse of Bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG) therapy. We report five cases of patients with Reiter’s syndrome following intravesical BCG therapy for bladder carcinoma, and review the clinical characteristics, treatments, and outcomes of these patients. Each patient developed polyarthritis after urinary tract symptoms, and developed conjunctivitis anywhere from the third to the eighth BCG induction cycle. One case presented a slight elevation of inflammatory responses in blood analysis, and the other four cases had a higher level of white blood cell (WBC) counts and C-reactive protein (CRP) values. WBC counts at the diagnosis of Reiter’s syndrome had a positive correlation with the time from initial treatment to cure of the disease. In all cases, BCG therapy was discontinued, and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), oral steroids, and anti-tuberculosis drugs were administered. Anti-rheumatic drugs were not used in these cases. Improvement of symptoms was reported from 1 to 13 months after initial treatment. No patients had recurrence of Reiter’s syndrome, whereas 2 patients had alternative treatment 2 and 18 months later, respectively, because of cancer recurrence. For cases with conjunctivitis and joint pain occurring during intravesical BCG therapy, early clinical interventions such as NSAIDs, steroids, and anti-tuberculosis drugs should be introduced, especially in cases with a high level of inflammatory changes in blood analysis.