Two-year follow-up study after human parvovirus B19 infection.

Background: Acute human parvovirus B19 (B19) infection induces systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE)-like symptoms. It has been controversial whether B19 infection causes SLE and rheumatoid arthritis (RA).

Objectives: This study prospectively investigated whether symptoms of B19 infection persisted for more than 2 years and whether persistent symptoms contributed to the development of SLE and RA.

Methods: In this prospective study, clinical findings were examined and laboratory examinations were performed in 42 adult patients 1, 2, 6, 12 and 24 months after the first consultation.

Results: Most acute symptoms disappeared within 2 weeks. However, arthralgia continued for 2 months in 2 women, 6 months in 1 woman and more than 2 years in 1 woman with positive antinuclear antibody and hypocomplementemia. The clinical findings of the patient with persistent arthralgia did not fulfill the criteria for SLE and RA.

Conclusion: The symptoms caused by B19 infection were transient in most cases but persisted in 1 case in our series.