ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Adult-onset Still's disease (AOSD) is a challenging diagnosis because of the variability in clinical presentation and lack of gold-standard diagnostic investigations. Even after diagnosis, the treatment is challenging, especially when the disease is refractory to first-line therapy. Multiple pharmacotherapeutic options exist for refractory AOSD, but treatment failures still occur. Etanercept, a Tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha inhibitor, is one of the options that has been rarely used for refractory AOSD, with various outcomes ranging from no response to complete remission. CASE PRESENTATION: In this case, we highlight how a previously healthy lady had refractory AOSD to glucocorticoids, methotrexate, and hydroxychloroquine combination therapy. There was no response to interleukin (IL)-1 therapy, which necessitated a switch to a combination of etanercept, low-dose methotrexate, and low-dose glucocorticoids with complete remission for a total of three- -year follow-up. CONCLUSION: The combination of methotrexate and Etanercept can maintain remission in patients with refractory AOSD.
Subject(s)
Methotrexate , Still's Disease, Adult-Onset , Adult , Humans , Methotrexate/therapeutic use , Etanercept/therapeutic use , Still's Disease, Adult-Onset/drug therapy , Drug Therapy, Combination , Glucocorticoids/therapeutic useABSTRACT
Gout and pseudogout are inflammatory arthritides due to monosodium urate and calcium pyrophosphate dihydrate crystal formation. Both are prevalent among geriatric patients, and can present as acute mono- or oligoarticular disease, or as a chronic polyarthropathy resembling osteoarthritis or rheumatoid arthritis. Gout in the geriatric patient is a disease affecting women, commonly associated with diuretic usage, often involves the fingers, may be complicated by the development of masses of uric acid crystals (tophi) in soft tissues, and is frequently polyarticular. Pseudogout in the geriatric patient has a variety of clinical presentations, may be acute or chronic, and should be considered in evaluating any patient with osteoarthritis occurring in an atypical distribution. Treatment includes the use of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, colchicine, or corticosteroids. Gout may be impacted by dietary factors, weight reduction, and avoidance of certain forms of alcohol; uric acid-lowering agents are effective for refractory or chronic tophaceous disease.
