Peripheral Enthesitis in Spondyloarthritis: Lessons from Targeted Treatments.

A significant proportion of patients with spondyloarthritis (SpA) have peripheral enthesitis. Data suggest that psoriatic arthritis (PsA) patients with enthesitis have a higher disease burden than those without enthesitis. Over the past decade, there has been a proliferation of treatment options for spondyloarthropathy. These medications target multiple signaling pathways, including tumor necrosis factor (TNF), interleukin (IL)-17A, IL-12/23, IL-23, thymus (T)-cell co-stimulation, intracellular Janus kinases, and phosphodiesterase enzymes. As a key domain in SpA, enthesitis outcomes are included in pivotal trials of these agents and are reported as secondary outcome measures. One significant limitation is that the clinical evaluation of enthesitis relies on eliciting tenderness on palpation and is insensitive when compared with imaging. Furthermore, direct comparisons between studies are not available due to the use of different outcome measures, lack of consistent and comprehensive reporting outcomes, and subgroup analyses with a lower number of patients with enthesitis. This systematic review describes the epidemiology, pathophysiology, and available targeted therapies against enthesitis, as well as a detailed report of their efficacy. One major trend identified during this review is incomplete reporting of outcome measures, as many studies reported proportions of enthesitis prevalence. Factors that affected responsiveness in clinical trials included the entheseal instrument used, the number of subjects available for comparison, as well as the therapeutic agent. In general, anti-TNF and anti-IL-17 agents, as well as Janus kinase inhibitors, show moderate responsiveness for enthesitis. The data for IL-23 targeting is contradictory.

Pyoderma Gangrenosum as a Presenting Feature of Undifferentiated Spondyloarthropathy with Erosive Inflammatory Arthritis.

Pyoderma gangrenosum is a rare inflammatory condition with varying clinical presentations and severity. It is commonly seen in association with an underlying condition, most common of which is inflammatory bowel disease. We report a case of a 26-year-old male who came to the emergency department with increasing lower extremity ulcers, intermittent hematochezia, and pain in the small joints of his hands. After excluding a broad list of differentials for lower extremity ulcers, the diagnosis of pyoderma gangrenosum was made. He was also found to have erosive changes at multiple proximal interphalangeal joints and jug-like syndesmophytes at T12 and L1 on CT scan. Although there was evidence of a spondyloarthropathy, there was no evidence of inflammatory bowel disease on colonoscopy, psoriasis, or sexually transmitted infections. After multiple failed trials of medications including azathioprine and sulfasalazine, 4 weeks of Adalimumab resulted in rapid healing of pyoderma gangrenosum lesions and improvement in his synovitis. Coupled together, this suggests a diagnosis of pyoderma gangrenosum associated with undifferentiated spondyloarthropathy and erosive inflammatory arthritis. This case is suggestive of spondyloarthropathy going underdiagnosed and untreated in other patients with pyoderma gangrenosum as lower extremity ulcerations can be the primary complaint for seeking treatment. Although rare, axial spondyloarthropathy associated with pyoderma gangrenosum should be kept as an associated differential diagnosis when faced with pyoderma gangrenosum.

Metachronous Granular Cell Tumor of the Descending Colon.

Granular cell tumors (GCTs) are uncommon tumors. They are believed to be neuronal in origin and are usually found in the head and/or neck area of the body. They have also been reported in various locations of the gastrointestinal (GI) system, usually discovered during routine screening colonoscopy. We report a case of GCT in a 58-year-old asymptomatic African American female as a metachronous tumor of a well-differentiated adenocarcinoma of the sigmoid colon, which was an incidental finding in screening colonoscopy. To our knowledge, this is the first case with GCT identified as a metachronous tumor following an adenocarcinoma of the colon.

A Rare Case of Systemic Lupus Erythematosus with Gastric Ulcer and Acute Pancreatitis: A Case Report and Literature Review.

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a chronic inflammatory disease which can manifest in many different organ systems. Gastrointestinal (GI) involvement is common in SLE, but the symptoms are usually mild. More severe GI complications including acute pancreatitis and peptic ulcer bleeding are rare but represent a significant risk of morbidity and mortality. We present a case of a 25-year-old Hispanic female with a severe SLE flare. The initial presentation included symptoms of hematemesis and epigastric abdominal pain secondary to both gastric ulceration and acute pancreatitis, an atypical presentation of an SLE flare. The non-specific symptom of abdominal pain makes both acute pancreatitis and gastric ulcer disease a clinical challenge; however, clinicians need to have a high suspicion for these conditions co-existing at the same time due to higher mortality rates.

Rhabdomyolysis: An Unusual Presentation of Mycoplasma pneumoniae Infection in an Adult-A Case Report and Literature Review.

Mycoplasma pneumoniae is a common cause of community-acquired pneumonia, and many extrapulmonary manifestations have been described, but rhabdomyolysis is infrequently reported in adults. Of the few cases that have been reported in adults, it was almost exclusively seen when pneumonia was present. We report a case of a 30-year-old male who came in with complaints of fever and myalgia for three days. Immunoglobulin M antibodies for Mycoplasma pneumoniae were positive and trending up, despite having no radiographic evidence of pneumonia on chest X-ray or CT scan. He was treated successfully with levofloxacin and intravenous hydration. Later, his condition was clinically and biochemically improved, and he was discharged. Our patient did not present with typical respiratory tract symptoms of a mycoplasma infection. In addition, there was an absence of pneumonia on imaging, suggesting that rhabdomyolysis secondary to mycoplasma might be underdiagnosed and go untreated in the setting of low clinical suspicion. Upon review of the literature, there is only one other case of mycoplasma infection where rhabdomyolysis occurred in the absence of pneumonia. However, the degree of rhabdomyolysis in our case was much more severe. Although rare, when faced with rhabdomyolysis, Mycoplasma pneumoniae should be kept as a differential diagnosis even in the absence of pneumonia on radiological imaging.

Predictors of hospital stay in normotensive acute pulmonary embolism: a retrospective pilot study.

Introduction: The aim of our study is to determine the clinical, biochemical, and imaging factors that affect the duration of hospital stay in patients admitted with normotensive acute pulmonary embolism. Methods: This was a single-center retrospective study conducted in a community hospital in New York metropolitan area for patients admitted from October 2015 to October 2017. Results: A total of 79 patients were included, the mean age was 55.76 (SD = 17.33), 29 cases were males (37%) and 50 cases were females (63%). Among all patients, 17 cases had short length of stay (LOS) (≤2 days) and 62 cases had long LOS (>2 days). There were statistically significant differences in age (p = .041), presence of lung disease (p = .036), number of comorbidities (p = .043), and pulmonary embolism severity index (PESI) scores (original and simplified; p = .002 and .001, respectively). Logistic regression analysis showed that PESI score significantly predicted long LOS (OR 1.067, 95% CI [1.001, 1.137], p = .048). Similarly, sPESI significantly predicted long LOS (OR 0.223, 95% CI [0.050, 0.999], p = .050). Both regression models were adjusted for age, lung disease, and number of comorbidities. Conclusion: Both original and simplified PESI scores were statistically significant predictors of duration of hospital stay. Patients with multiple comorbidities or with chronic lung disease were also likely to have prolonged hospital stay. None of the cardiac biomarkers affected the duration of hospital stay, neither did the presence of right ventricular dysfunction nor treatment modality.

Spinal gout causing reversible quadriparesis: a case report and literature review.

Gout commonly affects peripheral joints and is rarely found in axial joints, such as the spine and sacroiliac joints. We report a case of a patient that presented with quadriparesis who was empirically treated for spinal gout and a review of relevant literature. A 77-year-old male presented with new-onset quadriparesis that developed over 3 days. MRI imaging was suggestive of tophaceous gout of the cervical spine, but our patient refused a spinal biopsy. He was empirically treated with high-dose steroids and his upper and lower extremities weakness started improving within 3 days and resolved completely. Although spinal gout is uncommon, this case indirectly suggests that gout should be kept as a differential diagnosis when faced with back pain or quadriparesis. This case implies that empiric treatment should be considered when radiographic evidence is suggestive of tophaceous gout of the spine.

Scleredema Diabeticorum with Superimposed Cellulitis and Abscess Formation.

Scleredema diabeticorum is a rare cutaneous manifestation of diabetes mellitus. We present a case of an obese male with poorly controlled diabetes who came to the hospital with upper back pain and subsequently developed sepsis due to a small deep-seated abscess in his back that was drained and treated with antibiotics. He was also found to have extensive induration of the skin over his back and neck. Skin biopsy confirmed the diagnosis of scleredema diabeticorum.

Hypereosinophilic Syndrome Complicated by Eosinophilic Myocarditis With Dramatic Response to Steroid.

Introduction. Eosinophilic myocarditis is an infiltrative disease that affects the myocardium leading to various presentations. It can be precipitated by medications, helminthiasis, or hypereosinophilic syndrome. Case. We present the case of a young, male patient who presented with palpitations and dyspnea and was found to have heart failure with reduced ejection fracture of 12%. His past medical history was significant for recent lung problem treated with steroids. Based on his history and laboratory findings, he was started on intravenous steroids for treatment of eosinophilic myocarditis. Within 3 days, his ejection fracture improved to 35%. Conclusion. Given the nonspecific clinical presentations, mimicking other diseases, high index of suspicion is warranted to diagnose eosinophilic myocarditis. This is crucial as early detection and treatment with steroids can lead to a dramatic response.