ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Costochondritis (CC) is a common, but poorly understood condition among patients with chest wall pain. We have prospectively analyzed distinctive features of patients presenting to the emergency department with chest pain and CC. METHODS: Patients with a chief complaint of chest pain, not due to trauma, fever, or malignancy, were prospectively evaluated for the presence of CC and compared with another chest pain group without CC. RESULTS: Of 122 consecutive patients studied, 36 had CC (30%) and in 17 the pain induced reproduced the original one (15%). Women made up 69% of the patients with CC (vs 31% of control subjects) and Hispanics 47% (vs 24% of control subjects). Only three patients (8%) with CC met the American College of Rheumatology criteria for fibromyalgia, while none of the control subjects did. Widespread pain was more common in the CC group (42% vs 5%). The mean sedimentation rate in the CC group was 44 +/- 31 mm/h vs 41 +/- 31 mm/h in the control group. The acute myocardial infarction rate was 6% in the CC group vs 28% in the control group. Rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis were diagnosed in three and two patients, respectively, of 32 patients with CC cases. One year later, 11 (55%) of 21 patients with CC were still suffering from chest pain, but only one third still had definite CC. CONCLUSIONS: Costochondritis is common among patients with chest pain in an emergency department setting, with a higher frequency among women and Hispanics. It is associated with fibromyalgia in only a minority of cases. Patients with CC appear to have a lower frequency of acute myocardial infarction. Spontaneous resolution is seen in most cases at 1 year.
Subject(s)
Tietze's Syndrome/diagnosis , Aged , Chest Pain/etiology , Chronic Disease , Diagnosis, Differential , Female , Humans , Male , Middle Aged , Prospective Studies , Tietze's Syndrome/complicationsABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: To describe an observed improvement in CD4 lymphocytes in patients with Reiter's syndrome (RS) and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection, after treatment with sulfasalazine (SFSZ). METHODS . Care series. We analyzed CD4 lymphocyte counts in 4 consecutive patients with RS and HIV disease before and after treatment with SFSZ. RESULTS: CD4+ lymphocyte counts increased from a mean of 315 +/- 179 before treatment to 542 +/- 231 x 10(6)/l on followup (p < 0.03), in the absence of antiretroviral therapy. The significance of these observations is discussed. CONCLUSION: Treatment of RS with SFSZ in HIV disease appears to be associated with an improvement in CD4 count.
