Abstract
Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and antisynthetase syndrome (ASS) are distinct clinical syndromes, and their co-occurrence is rarely encountered. The authors report the case of a 56-year-old female patient with RA of 3 years duration who suddenly developed ASS, and include a review of the literature. The patient was diagnosed with ASS based on; positivity for anti-histidyl-tRNA synthetase (Jo-1) antibody, interstitial lung disease, polyarthritis, and mechanic’s hands. High-dose corticosteroid and pulse intravenous cyclophosphamide were used to control the ASS. This case demonstrates that ASS should be considered during clinical presentations due to its potential overlap with RA.
References
Love LA, Leff RL, Fraser DD, Targoff IN, Dalakas M, Plotz PH et al (1991) A new approach to the classification of idiopathic inflammatory myopathy: myositis-specific autoantibodies define useful homogeneous patient groups. Medicine (Baltimore) 70:360–374
Marguerie C, Bunn CC, Beynon HL, Bernstein RM, Hughes JM, So AK et al (1990) Polymyositis, pulmonary fibrosis and autoantibodies to aminoacyl-tRNA synthetase enzymes. Q J Med 77:1019–1038
Gomard-Mennesson E, Fabien N, Cordier JF, Ninet J, Tebib J, Rousset H (2007) Clinical significance of anti-histidyl-tRNA synthetase (Jo1) autoantibodies. Ann N Y Acad Sci 1109:414–420
Nishikai M, Reichlin M (1980) Heterogeneity of precipitating antibodies in polymyositis and dermatomyositis. Characterization of the Jo-1 antibody system. Arthritis Rheum 23:881–888
Imbert-Masseau A, Hamidou M, Agard C, Grolleau JY, Cherin P (2003) Antisynthetase syndrome. Joint Bone Spine 70:161–168
Sakai F, Noma S, Kurihara Y, Yamada H, Azuma A, Kudoh S et al (2005) Leflunomide-related lung injury in patients with rheumatoid arthritis: imaging features. Mod Rheumatol 15:173–179
Ju JH, Kim SI, Lee JH, Lee SI, Yoo WH, Choe JY et al (2007) Risk of interstitial lung disease associated with leflunomide treatment in Korean patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Arthritis Rheum 56:2094–2096
O’Neill TW, Maddison PJ (1993) Rheumatoid arthritis associated with myositis and anti-Jo-1 antibody. J Rheumatol 20:141–143
Ponyi A, Constantin T, Danko K (2004) Antiphospholipid and antisynthetase syndrome in a patient with polymyositis-rheumatoid arthritis overlap. Clin Rheumatol 23:371–372
Bowles NE, Dubowitz V, Sewry CA, Archard LC (1987) Dermatomyositis, polymyositis, and Coxsackie-B-virus infection. Lancet 1:1004–1007
Plotz PH (1983) Autoantibodies are anti-idiotype antibodies to antiviral antibodies. Lancet 2:824–826
Ochi S, Taniguchi K, Nagashima M (2009) Leflunomide-induced polymyositis in a patient with rheumatoid arthritis. Mod Rheumatol 19:443–446
Acknowledgments
This work was supported by grants from the Korea Research Foundation (KRF-2008-331-E00143), which was funded by the Korean government (MOEHRD), the Chonnam National University Hospital Research Institute of Clinical Medicine (#CRI09025-1), and the Brain Korea 21 Project, Center for Biomedical Human Resources at Chonnam National University.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
C.-K. Park and T.-J. Kim contributed equally to this work.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Park, CK., Kim, TJ., Cho, YN. et al. Development of antisynthetase syndrome in a patient with rheumatoid arthritis. Rheumatol Int 31, 529–532 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00296-009-1222-y
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00296-009-1222-y