100 Cases in Orthopaedics and Rheumatology (II)

Below I have added some links related to the last half of the book’s coverage, as well as some more observations from the book.

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Scaphoid fracture. Watson’s test. Dorsal intercalated segment instability. (“Non-union is not uncommon as a complication after scaphoid fractures because the blood supply to this bone is poor. Smokers have a higher incidence of non-union. Occasionally, the blood supply is poor enough to lead to avascular necrosis. If non-union is not detected, subsequent arthritis in the wrist can develop.”)
Septic arthritis. (“Septic arthritis is an orthopaedic emergency. […] People with septic arthritis are typically unwell with fevers and malaise and the joint pain is severe. […] Any acutely hot or painful joint is septic arthritis until proven otherwise.”)
Rheumatoid arthritis. (“[RA is] the most common of the inflammatory arthropathies. […] early-morning stiffness and pain, combined with soft-tissue rather than bony swelling, are classic patterns for inflammatory disease. Although […] RA affects principally the small joints of the hands (and feet), it may progress to involve any synovial joint and may be complicated by extra-articular features […] family history [of the disease] is not unusual due to the presence of susceptibility genes such as HLA-DR. […] Not all patients with RA have rheumatoid factor (RF), and not all patients with RF have RA; ACPA has greater specificity for RA than rheumatoid factor. […] Medical therapy focuses on disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs) such as methotrexate, sulphasalazine, leflunomide and hydroxychloroquine which may be used individually or in combination. […] Disease activity in RA is measured by the disease activity score (DAS), which is a composite score of the clinical evidence of synovitis, the current inflammatory response and the patient’s own assessment of their health. […] Patients who have high disease activity as determined by the DAS and have either failed or failed to tolerate standard disease modifying therapy qualify for biologic therapy – monoclonal antibodies that are directed against key components of the inflammatory response. […] TNF-α blockade is highly effective in up to 70 per cent of patients, reducing both inflammation and the progressive structural damage associated with severe active disease.”)
Ankylosing spondylitis. Ankylosis. Schober’s index. Costochondritis.
Mononeuritis multiplex. (“Mononeuritis multiplex arises due to interruption of the vasa nervorum, the blood supply to peripheral nerves […] Mononeuritis multiplex is commonly caused by diabetes or vasculitis. […] Vasculitis – inflammation of blood vessels and subsequent obstruction to blood flow – can be primary (idiopathic) or secondary, in which case it is associated with an underlying condition such as rheumatoid arthritis. The vasculitides are classified according to the size of the vessel involved. […] Management of mononeuritis multiplex is based on potent immunosuppression […] and the treatment of underlying infections such as hepatitis.”)
Multiple myeloma. Bence-Jones protein. (“The combination of bone pain and elevated ESR and calcium is suggestive of multiple myeloma.”)
Osteoporosis. DEXA scan. T-score. (“Postmenopausal bone loss is the most common cause of osteoporosis, but secondary osteoporosis may occur in the context of a number of medical conditions […] Steroid-induced osteoporosis is a significant problem in medical practice. […] All patients receiving corticosteroids should have bone protection […] Pharmacological treatment in the form of calcium supplementation and biphosphonates to reduce osteoclast activity is effective but compliance is typically poor.”)
Osteomalacia. Rickets. Craniotabes.
Paget’s disease (see also this post). (“In practical terms, the main indication to treat Paget’s disease is pain […] although bone deformity or compression syndromes (or risk thereof) would also prompt therapy. The treatment of choice is a biphosphonate to diminish osteoclast activity”).
Stress fracture. Female athlete triad. (“Stress fractures are overuse injuries and occur when periosteal resorption exceeds bone formation. They are commonly seen in two main patient groups: soldiers may suffer so-called march fractures in the metatarsals, while athletes may develop them in different sites according to their sporting activity. Although the knee is a common site in runners due to excess mechanical loading, stress fractures may also result in non-weight-bearing sites due to repetitive and excessive traction […]. The classic symptom […] is of pain that occurs throughout running and crucially persists with rest; this is in contrast to shin splints, a traction injury to the tibial periosteum in which the pain diminishes somewhat with continued activity […] The crucial feature of rehabilitation is a graded return to sport to prevent progression or recurrence.”)
Psoriatic arthritis. (“Arthropathy and rash is a common combination in rheumatology […] Psoriatic arthritis is a common inflammatory arthropathy that affects up to 15 per cent of those with psoriasis. […] Nail disease is very helpful in differentiating psoriatic arthritis from other forms of inflammatory arthropathy.”)
Ehlers–Danlos syndromes. Marfan syndrome. Beighton (hypermobility) score.
Carpal tunnel syndrome. (“Carpal tunnel syndrome is the most common entrapment neuropathy […] The classic symptoms are of tingling in the sensory distribution of the median nerve (i.e. the lateral three and a half digits); loss of thumb abduction is a late feature. Symptoms are often worse at night (when the hand might be quite painful) and in certain postures […] The majority of cases are idiopathic, but pregnancy and rheumatoid arthritis are very common precipitating causes […] The majority of patients will respond well to conservative management […] If these measures fail, corticosteroid injection into the carpal tunnel can be very effective in up to 80 per cent of patients. Surgical decompression should be reserved for those with persistent disabling symptoms or motor loss.”)
Mixed connective tissue disease.
Crystal arthropathy. Tophus. Uric acid nephropathy. Chondrocalcinosis. (“In any patient presenting with an acutely painful and swollen joint, the most important diagnoses to consider are septic arthritis and crystal arthropathy. Crystal arthropathy such as gout is more common than septic arthritis […] Gout may be precipitated by diuretics, renal impairment and aspirin use”).
Familial Mediterranean fever. Amyloidosis.
Systemic lupus erythematosus (see also this). Jaccoud arthropathy. Lupus nephritis. (“Renal disease is the most feared complication of SLE.”)
Scleroderma. Raynaud’s phenomenon. (“Scleroderma is an uncommon disorder characterized by thickening of the skin and, to a greater or lesser degree, fibrosis of internal organs.”)
Henoch-Schönlein purpura. Cryoglobulinemia. (“Purpura are the result of a spontaneous extravasation of blood from the capillaries into the skin. If small they are known as petechiae, when they are large they are termed ecchymoses. There is an extensive differential diagnosis for purpura […] The combination of palpable purpura (distributed particularly over the buttocks and extensor surfaces of legs), abdominal pain, arthritis and renal disease is a classic presentation of Henoch–Schönlein purpura (HSP). HSP is a distinct and frequently self-limiting small-vessel vasculitis that can affect any age; but the majority of cases present in children aged 2–10 years, in whom the prognosis is more benign than the adult form, often remitting entirely within 3–4 months. The abdominal pain may mimic a surgical abdomen and can presage intussusception, haemorrhage or perforation. The arthritis, in contrast, is relatively mild and tends to affect the knees and ankles.”)
Rheumatic fever.
Erythema nodosum. (“Mild idiopathic erythema nodosum […] needs no specific treatment”).
Rheumatoid lung disease. Bronchiolitis obliterans. Methotrexate-induced pneumonitis. Hamman–Rich syndrome.
Antiphospholipid syndrome. Sapporo criteria. (“Antiphospholipid syndrome is a hypercoagulable state characterized by recurrent arteriovenous thrombosis and/or pregnancy morbidity in the presence of either a lupus anticoagulant or anticardiolipin antibody (both phospholipid-related proteins). […] The most common arteriovenous thrombotic events in antiphospholipid syndrome are deep venous thrombosis and pulmonary embolus […], but any part of the circulation may be involved, with arterial events such as myocardial infarction and stroke carrying a high mortality rate. Poor placental circulation is thought to be responsible for the high pregnancy morbidity, with recurrent first- and second-trimester loss and a higher rate of pre-eclampsia being typical clinical features.”)
Still’s disease. (“Consider inflammatory disease in cases of pyrexia of unknown origin.”)
Polymyalgia rheumatica. Giant cell arteritis. (“[P]olymyalgia rheumatica (PMR) [is] a systemic inflammatory syndrome affecting the elderly that is characterized by bilateral pain and stiffness in the shoulders and hip girdles. The stiffness can be profound and limits mobility although true muscle weakness is not a feature. […] The affected areas are diffusely tender, with movements limited by pain. […] care must be taken not to attribute joint inflammation to PMR until other diagnoses have been excluded; for example, a significant minority of RA patients may present with a polymyalgic onset. […] The treatment for PMR is low-dose corticosteroids. […] Many physicians would consider a dramatic response to low-dose prednisolone as almost diagnostic for PMR, so if a patients symptoms do not improve rapidly it is wise to re-evaluate the original diagnosis.”)
Relapsing polychondritis. (“Relapsing polychondritis is characterized histologically by inflammatory infiltration and later fibrosis of cartilage. Any cartilage, in any location, is at risk. […] Treatment of relapsing polychondritis is with corticosteroids […] Surgical reconstruction of collapsed structures is not an option as the deformity tends to continue postoperatively.”)
Dermatomyositis. Gottron’s Papules.
Enteropathic arthritis. (“A seronegative arthritis may develop in up to 15 per cent of patients with any form of inflammatory bowel disease, including ulcerative colitis (UC), Crohn’s disease or microscopic and collagenous colitis. The most common clinical presentations are a peripheral arthritis […] and spondyloarthritis.”)
Reflex sympathetic dystrophy.
Whipple’s disease. (“Although rare, consider Whipple’s disease in any patient presenting with malabsorption, weight loss and arthritis.”)
Wegener’s granulomatosis. (“Small-vessel vasculitis may cause a pulmonary-renal syndrome. […] The classic triad of Weneger’s granulomatosis is the presence of upper and lower respiratory tract disease and renal impairment.”)
Reactive arthritis. Reiter’s syndrome. (“Consider reactive arthritis in any patient presenting with a monoarthropathy. […] Reactive arthritis is generally benign, with up to 80 per cent making a full recovery.”)
Sarcoidosis. Löfgren syndrome.
Polyarteritis nodosa. (“Consider mesenteric ischaemia in any patient presenting with a systemic illness and postprandial abdominal pain.”)
Sjögren syndrome. Schirmer’s test.
Behçet syndrome.
Lyme disease. Erythema chronicum migrans. (“The combination of rash leading to arthralgia and cranial neuropathy is a classic presentation of Lyme disease.”)
Takayasu arteritis. (“Takayasu’s arteritis is an occlusive vasculitis leading to stenoses of the aorta and its principal branches. The symptoms and signs of the disease depend on the distribution of the affected vessel but upper limbs are generally affected more commonly than the iliac tributaries. […] the disease is a chronic relapsing and remitting condition […] The mainstay of treatment is high-dose corticosteroids plus a steroid-sparing agent such as methotrexate. […] Cyclophosphamide is reserved for those patients who do not achieve remission with standard therapy. Surgical intervention such as bypass or angioplasty may improve ischaemic symptoms once the inflammation is under control.”)
Lymphoma.
Haemarthrosis. (“Consider synovial tumours in a patient with unexplained haemarthrosis.”)
Juvenile idiopathic arthritis.
Drug-induced lupus erythematosus. (“Drug-induced lupus (DIL) generates a different spectrum of clinical manifestations from idiopathic disease. DIL is less severe than idiopathic SLE, and nephritis or central nervous system involvement is very rare. […] The most common drugs responsible for a lupus-like syndrome are procainamide, hydralazine, quinidine, isoniazid, methyldopa, chlorpromazine and minocycline. […] Treatment involves stopping the offending medication and the symptoms will gradually resolve.”)
Churg–Strauss syndrome.