IgG4-related disease: a rheumatologist's perspective.

Objectives: Given that the clinical features of several IgG4-related diseases (IgG4-RD) can mimic those of autoimmune disorders, the aim of this study was to find possible distinguishing characteristics that would help us identify such cases from the pool of patients in a rheumatology clinic.

Methods: From our clinic's medical records, we identified patients who fulfilled the recently published diagnostic criteria for IgG4-RD. We recorded their presenting features, co-morbid conditions, laboratory, radiologic and histologic findings as well as their treatment and outcome.

Interstitial lung disease in a patient with antisynthetase syndrome and no myositis.

Interstitial lung disease in patients with antisynthetase syndrome and no evidence of myositis is rare and may precede other disease manifestations. We report a patient who initially presented with symptoms primarily related to lung involvement. The diagnosis of the antisynthetase syndrome without myositis was made many months later when he developed a characteristic hand rash (mechanic's hands), which was confirmed by positive antibodies to Jo-1.

Autoimmune manifestations in common variable immunodeficiency.

Common variable immunodeficiency (CVID) is a disorder characterized by decreased serum immunoglobulin concentrations and increased incidence of recurrent infections. Interestingly 20-25% of patients with CVID develop clinical features suggestive of an autoimmune disease. Although this association is well established, the immunodeficiency background of CVID patients manifesting autoimmune disorders is often overlooked.