Clinical studies on mixed connective tissue disease (MCTD)

Abstract

In order to evaluate the clinical spectrum of MCTD, we analysed clinical features of our 77 patients with various kinds of connective tissue diseases (CTD), SLE, PSS, PM•DM and UCTD, appling to criteria for MCTD proposed by the Research Committee of ministry of Health and Welfare. Twenty five patients fulfilled this criteria.These 25 patients were classified arbitrarily into homogeneous and dominant•overlap type according to satisfactory of their clinical findings for criteria of each connective tissue disease.Homogeneous MCTD unsatisfying criteria of any CTD seemed to be different from dominant•overlap MCTD satisfying one or more criteria of CTD as follows: Ages of patients with homogeneous MCTD were more older than those of dominant•overlap MCTD. In homogeneous MCTD, lymphadenopathy, lung fibrosis, mild muscle involvement and sicca syndrome were more frequent in addition to Raynaud's phenomenon, swollen hands and joint involvement. On the other hand, in dominant•overlap MCTD, facial erythema, skinsclerosis and severe muscle involvement were more frequent with other anti-nuclear antibodies besides anti n-RNP antibody.In clinical course of MCTD patients with both types, symptoms became less and weaker.In general, symptoms of PSS remained.From these observations, MCTD patients could be classified into subgroups; homogeneous and dominant•overlap, according to their satisfactory of diagnostic criteria of SLE, PSS or PM•DM.