[Effect of dimethyl sulfoxide and dimethyl sulfone on a destructive process in the joints of mice with spontaneous arthritis]. / Vliianie dimetilsul'foksida i dimetilsul'fona na destruktivnyi protsess v sustavakh pri spontannom artrite u myshei.

The authors used the blind method for evaluation of the morphological picture of the joints and the level of circulating immune complexes to study the effect of prolonged oral administration of dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) and its main metabolite dimethyl sulfone on the development of spontaneous arthritis in 36 Mrl/Mn/lnr female mice. It was found that DMSO and dimethyl sulfone lessen the destructive changes in the joints, while DMSO also inhibits the manifestation of immune disorders, i. e. produces a "basal" effect on the course of spontaneous chronic arthritis in experimental animals.

[Eosinophilic fasciitis (Shulman's syndrome)]. / Eozinofil'nyi fastsiit (sindrom Shul'mana).

The method of optic and electron microscopy was used to examine the skin, muscle and fascia in 8 patients with eosinophilic fasciitis aged from 20 to 57 years with the disease duration from 6 months to 3.5 years. When examining biopsy samples the authors paid special attention to the state of collagenic structure, cellular elements of the skin connective tissue, fascia and intermuscular layers, changes in the cross-striated muscle adjacent to the fascia, composition of cellular infiltrates as well as to the state of vascular microcirculation. It has been shown that with the given disease one can observe exudative-infiltrative processes with alteration of the vascular bed in the fascia and epimysium and the reaction of the microcirculatory bed of the skin and muscle with subsequent outcome into sclerosis at later periods of the disease. But the morphological data allow exclusion of the diffuse nature of microcirculation derangement in eosinophilic fasciitis. Morphogenesis of vascular lesions in this disease differs from such in scleroderma that suggests two different diseases.

[Differential diagnosis of diffuse eosinophilic fasciitis]. / Differentsia'lnaia diagnostika diffuznogo éozinofi'lnogo fastsiita.

The authors studied clinical course, morphological findings, condition of microcirculation in 22 patients with diffuse fasciitis++ in comparison with 20 patients with systemic scleroderma and 20 patients with other similar diseases. Comparing clinico-laboratory data of 62 patients sharp differences were observed between diffuse fasciitis++ and systemic scleroderma. In diffuse fasciitis++ microcirculation disorders were less marked than in systemic scleroderma. According to the above research diffuse eosinophilic fasciitis++ is considered to be an independent nosologic form.

[Stomatological manifestations in Sjögren's disease and syndrome]. / Stomatologicheskie proiavleniia bolezni i sindroma Shegrena.

For diagnosis of SS and SD and the detection of early stages of disease one should necessarily take into account the symptom complex of "major" (salivary gland enlargement, xerostomia, exacerbation of parotitis) and "minor" stomatological signs (multiple cervical caries, dry lips, perlèche, mycotic and herpetic stomatitis, lymphadenopathy). The initial, marked and late stages were defined according to a degree of expression of stomatological manifestations. The initial stage prevailed in SS, the late stage in SD. The chief method of examination were sialometry, sialography and minor salivary gland biopsy. Sialography was widely used as a less traumatic diagnostic procedure. In addition to common signs with SD, salivary gland involvement was characterized by changes typical of SS combined with rheumatic disease (sclerosis in sclerodermia, vasculitis in RA and SLE, nuclear pathology in SLE).

[Evolution of seronegative arthritis]. / Evoliutsiia seronegativnogo artrita.

The paper is concerned with the results of a follow up of 67 patients with seronegative arthritis. The average duration of observation was 7.6 yrs. Diagnoses in 4 patients were established on a repeated clinicolaboratory and x-ray study: ankylosing spondylitis, Reiter's syndrome, Yersinia arthritis and gonorrheal arthritis. A picture of seropositive rheumatoid arthritis was noted in 16 patients (24%). In 47 patients arthritis remained seronegative. Of them in 30 patients a course of disease did not differ from that of seropositive rheumatoid arthritis. Considerable progression of disease was noted at the acute onset of disease with multiple involvement of the joints and a high inflammatory and immunological activity of a process. A morphological investigation of the synovial bioptates in 20 patients did not reveal a classical picture of rheumatoid synovitis even in a prolonged course of seronegative rheumatoid arthritis. The authors defined two variants of morphological changes in the synovial tissue in this group corresponding to a benign and progressive course of seronegative RA.