Rheumatology Diseases Flashcards
What is osteoporosis?
Progressive skeletal disease with reduced bone mass and micro-deteriorations. Bone mineral density more than 2.5 sds below the mean
What is osteopenia?
Pre-cursor to osteoporosis= Bone mineral density 1-2.5 stds below the mean
What is the epidemiology of osteoporosis?
More common in females over 50. Caucasian and Asian populations more at risk
When does peak bone mass occur?
25 years
How does osteoporosis occur?
Increased breakdown by osteoclasts and decreased formation by osteoblasts, leading to loss of bone mass. When there is decreased oestrogen, there is increased numbers of osteoclasts and premature arrest of osteoblasts, and perforation of trabeculae= more likely fracture
What are the risk factors of osteoporosis?
Old age Women Family history Previous fracture Steroid use Endocrine disease Alcohol and tobacco Low BMI Low testosterone Early menopause Renal or liver failure Malabsorption
What are some lifestyle treatments for osteoporosis?
Quit smoking and alcohol
Calcium and vitamin D rich diet
Weight bearing exercise
Balance exercises
What is the clinical presentation of osteoporosis?
Only get symptoms from fractures
- Vertebral crush fracture= sudden pain
- Thoracic vertebral fracture = Kyphoidosis
How is osteoporosis diagnosed?
Dual energy x-ray absorptiometry (DEXA)= gold standard. Generates T scores. T score of more than 2.5 below mean= osteoporosis.
Calcium, phosphate and alkaline phosphate in bloods all normal
What are some pharmacological treatments for osteoporosis?
Anti-resorptives to slow down osteoclasts= Bisphosphonates, strontum renelate, denosumab
Hormone replacement therapy of oestrogen or testosterone
Raloxifene
What is osteomalacia?
Poor bone mineralisation leading to soft bone due to a lack of calcium (adult form of rickets)
What is the pathophysiology of osteomalacia?
Normal bone mineralisation depends on adequate calcium and phosphate. Vitamin D promotes calcium absorption in the intestines and promotes bone resorption by increasing osteoclast number
What is the aetiology of osteomalacia?
Hyperphosphataemia due to hyperparathyroidism Vit D deficiency Poor diet Lack of sunlight Drug induced Liver or renal disease Tumour induced
What is the clinical presentation of osteomalacia?
- Muscle weakness
- Dull bone ache
- Bone pain and tenderness
- Fracture especially on femur neck
What is the clinical presentation of rickets?
- Growth retardation, hypertonia
- Knock knees, bowed legs
- Widened epiphyses at wrists
- Hypocalcaemic tetany in severe cases
How is osteomalacia diagnosed?
Bloods: Low calcium and low phosphate, raised alk phosphatase, raised PTH, low vit D
Biopsy shows incomplete mineralisation
X ray shows defective mineralisation
How is osteomalacia treated?
Vit D replacement
- In dietary insufficiency= Calcium D3 forte
- In malabsorption/ hepatic disease= Oral ergocalciferol or IM calcitriol
- In renal disease= Alfacidol or calcitriol
What is fibromyalgia?
Widespread MSK pain after other conditions are excluded, characterised by central pain due to a central disturbance in pain processing
What are the risk factors for fibromyalgia?
Female, middle age, low household income, low education status, depression, IBS, ME
What is the epidemiology of fibromyalgia?
Often over 60 years. More common in females and those with rheumatoid arthritis
What is the clinical presentation of fibromyalgia?
- Chronic pain aggravated by cold, stress and exercise in the specific pain areas
- General morning stiffness
- Extreme fatigue after minimal exertion
- Non restorative sleep
- Patient is often angry as can’t find a reason for pain
What are the pain areas associated with fibromyalgia?
- Lower front of neck
- Base of skull
- Upper edge of breast
- Neck and shoulder
- Upper inner shoulder
- Elbow
- Upper outer buttock
- Inside of knee
- Hip
How is fibromyalgia diagnosed?
- Pain at 11 of 18 tender sites for more than 6 months
- Rule out differentials
How is fibromyalgia treated?
Educate patient and family about the symptoms
Reset pain thermostat
Low dose tricyclic antidepressants (oral amitriptyline) and anticonvulsants (Oral pregabalin)
What is osteomyelitis?
Infection localised to bone
What is the epidemiology of osteomyelitis?
Children more at risk.
What infections cause osteomyelitis?
Staphylococcus aureus
Coagulase negative staphylococci
Haemophillius influenzae, salmonella, pseudomonas aeruginosa
What are the risk factors for osteomyelitis?
Diabetes, IA, sickle cell, peripheral valvular disease Malnutrition Decreased immunity Prosthetic material Trauma
What is the pathophysiology of osteomyelitis?
Infammatory exudate (in response to bacteria) in the marrow leads to increased intramedullary pressure, with extension of exudate into the bone cortex. This causes rupture through the periosteum and interruption of the periosteal blood supply leading to necrosis. This leaves pieces of dead bone (sequestra) and new bone forms around it
What are the three ways that infection can spread to bone during osteomyelitis?
- Directly into bone via trauma or surgery
- Spread into bone via soft tissue
- Spread from the skin into the blood and then into the bone
What are the acute histopathological changes in osteomyelitis?
Oedema, inflammatory cells, vascular congestion
What are the chronic histopathological changes in osteomyelitis?
Sequestra, New bone formation, Neutrophil exudates
What is the clinical presentation of osteomyelitis?
Onset over several days Dull pain at site Fever, sweats, rigors, malaise Warmth, erythmia, swelling If chronic= Sinus formation
How is osteomyelitis diagnosed?
X ray may show osteopenia
MRI may show oedema
Blood culture for aetiology, ESR and CRP raised. If acute there will be raised WCC (Not if chronic)
Bone biopsy
How is osteomyelitis treated?
Immobilistation
Tailored antimicrobial therapy= IV teicoplanin, IV flucloxacillin, Oral fusidic acid
Surgical debridgement and removal of dead bone
Where is osteomyelitis normally in children?
More likely to go into long bones
Where is osteomyelitis normally in adults?
More likely to go into vertibrae
What is the epidemiology of paget’s disease of bone?
Incidence increases with age Affects up to 10% of individuals by 90 More common in Europe and Northern England UK has highest prevalence in world More common in females
What is the aetiology of Paget’s disease of bone?
Unknown aetiology
May result from latent viral infection in osteoclasts in susceptible individuals
Family history
What is the pathophysiology of Paget’s disease of bone?
There is increased osteoclastic bone resororption followed by formation of weaker new bone, increased local bone blood flow and fibrous tissue. Ultimately formation exceeds resorption but new woven bone is weaker= Deformity and fracture risk
What are the clinical features of Paget’s disease of bone?
Common fracture sites= Pelvis, lumbar spine, femur, thoracic spine, skull and tibia
Often asymptomatic
Bone pain
Joint pain= Cartilage damage and osteoarthritis
Deformities
Neurological complications such as deafness and hydrocephalus
Osteosarcoma
How is Paget’s disease of bone diagnosed?
Bloods: Increased alk phosphatase, normal calcium and phosphate
Urine= Urinary hydroxyproline excretion is raised
X ray= Localised bone enlargement and distortion, sclerotic changes, osteolytic areas
Isotope bone scans
What are the complications of Paget’s disease of bone?
Osteoarthritis
How is Paget’s disease of bone treated?
Bisphosphonates e.g. IV/oral zolendronate or oral alendronate= inhibits bone resorption
NSAIDs e.g. ibuprofen = Pain relief
Disease management and monitoring= Serum alk phos`
What is the epidemiology of gout?
Common especially in developed countries
More common in males
Rarely occurs before young adulthood
Most common in IA in the UK
What is the aetiology of gout?
- Diet= alcohol (beer), purine rich food, high fructose, high saturated fat diet
- Drugs such as aspirin
- IHD
- Family history
- Renal causes= defective gene for URAT1 transporter, high insulin, diuretics
- Increased uric acid production
What is the pathophysiology of gout?
Purines need to be excreted. In the body they are broken down= Hypoxanthine is converted to xanthine and then to uric acid via xanthine oxidase enzyme. This is then excreted via kidneys, but in hyperuricaemia it is converted to monosodium urate crystals which causes symptomatic gout, and causes an inflammatory response.
What causes acute gout?
Monosodium crystals form, typically in middle aged men, sudden pain, swelling and redness in the first metatarsal joint
What are the types of gout?
- Acute gout
- Chronic gout
- Tophaceous gout
What is tophaceous gout?
Peristant hyperuricaemia, monosodium crystals form smooth white deposits (tophi) in skin around joints. Tophi release local proteolytic enzymes which erode bone
How is gout diagnosed?
Joint fluid aspiration shows needle shaped crystals
Serum uric acid level is raised - may need to be repeated as uric acid levels fall rapidly after an attack
- Over 420 mmol/l in men
- Over 360 mmol/l in women
Serum urea and creatinine, and eGFR
How is gout treated?
Aim to lower uric acid to normal levels, lose weightm eat dairy, lower alcohol, avoid purine rich food
In acute gout- High dose NSAIDs or COX inhibitor. If NSAID contraindication, offer colchine (but this is very toxic and can cause diarrhoea)
How can gout be prevented?
Lifestyle changes- stop diuretics, etc
Allopurinol: Inhibits xanthine oxidase so less uric acid production. Not to be given straight after acute attack
Febuxostat: If allopurinol contraindicated
What is the epidemiology of septic arthritis?
Increases with age
What are the possible causes of septic arthritis?
- Staph Aureus = most common
- Streptococci
- N. Gonorrhoea
- Haemophillius influenzae in children
- Gram negative bacteria e.g. E coli
What are the risk factors for septic arthritis?
- Pre existing joint disease e.g. Rheumatoid Arthritis
- Diabetes mellitus
- Immunosuppression
- Chronic renal failure
- Recent joint surgery/ Prosthetic limbs
- IV drug abuse
- Those over 80 and infants
- Recent intra-articular steroid injection
- Direct/ penetrating trauma
What is the clinical presentation of septic arthritis?
- Pain, red, swollen, fever
- Most commonly in knee, hip and shoulder
- Systemic illness
- Decreased movement
How is septic arthritis diagnosed?
- Urgent joint aspiration= Fluid will be purulent, thick and opaque (instead of clear, thin and yellow)- can be cultured
- Polarised light microscopy for crystals= exclude gout
- ESR, CRP, WCC raised
- X ray= Excludes infections
How is septic arthritis treated?
- Stop methotrexate and anti-TNF alpha
- Double prednisolone dose if on long term prednisolone (don’t give if not already on it)
- Immobilise joint
- Early physiotherapy
- IV antibiotics for two weeks after culture
- Repeated joint drainage
- NSAIDs
What are the risk factors for pseudogout?
- Old age
- Diabetes
- Osteoarthritis
- Joint trauma/ Injury
- Metabolic disease: haemochromatosis and hyperparathyroidism
What is the epidemiology of pseudogout?
Affects women mainly
Briefly explain the pathophysiology of pseudogout
Deposition of calcium pyrophosphate in articular cartilage and periarticular tissue producing the radiological appearance of chonedrocalcinosis (linear calcification parallel to the articular surfaces)
What is the clinical presentation of pseudogout?
- Acute synovitis that resembles acute gout but is more common in elderly women
- Usually affects knee and wrist
- Very painful attacks
- Acute hot swollen wrist or knee
How is pseudogout diagnosed?
- Joint fluid aspiration and microscopy= Small rhomboid crystals, positively brifringent crystals under polarised light, joint fluid should look purlent so sent for culture to exclude septic arthritis
- Bloods: raised WCC
- X-ray: Shows chonedrocalcinosis- linear calcification parallel to articular surface
How is pseudogout treated?
- High dose NSAIDs or cox inhibitors
- If NSAID not tolerated well, then colchicine
- IM or intra-articular corticosteroid e.g. predrinosolone
- Aspiration of joint reduces pain dramatically
What are the clinical features of Sjorgen’s syndrome?
Dry eyes, dry mouth, enlargement of the parotid glands, Blepharitis
Briefly explain the pathophysiology of Sjorgen’s syndrome?
Not fully known
Possibly inflammation of the glands prompts autoimmune response
What is the aetiology of Sjorgen’s syndrome?
Can be idiopathic (Primary), or associated with another autoimmune condition (Secondary), often rheumatoid
What is the epidemiology of Sjorgen’s syndrome?
Classically a disease of middle aged women