Overlap syndrome
| Overlap syndrome | |
|---|---|
| Specialty | Rheumatology  |
An overlap syndrome is an autoimmune disease of connective tissue in which a patient presents with symptoms of two or more diseases.
Examples of overlap syndromes include mixed connective tissue disease and scleromyositis. Diagnosis depends on which diseases the patient shows symptoms and has positive antibodies for in their lab serology.
In overlap syndrome, features of the following diseases are found (most common listed):
- Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE),
- Systemic sclerosis,
- Polymyositis,
- Dermatomyositis,
- Rheumatoid arthritis (RA)
- Sjögren's syndrome
- Eosinophilic granulomatosis with polyangiitis (EGPA)
- Autoimmune thyroiditis
- Antiphospholipid antibody syndrome
The treatment of overlap syndrome is mainly based on the use of corticosteroids and immunosuppressants. Biologic drugs, i.e. anti-TNFα or anti-CD20 monoclonal antibodies, have been recently introduced as alternative treatments in refractory cases. There are some concerns with the use of anti-TNF agents in patients with systemic autoimmune diseases due to the risk of triggering disease exacerbations.[2]
See also
Further reading
References
- ^ Maddison PJ. (1991). "Overlap syndromes and mixed connective tissue disease". Current Opinion in Rheumatology. 3 (6): 995–1000. doi:10.1097/00002281-199112000-00016. PMID 1772755.
- ^ Iaccarino (Jun 2012). "Overlap connective tissue disease syndromes". Autoimmunity Reviewss. 12 (3): 363–73. doi:10.1016/j.autrev.2012.06.004. PMID 22743033.