title: Hepatitis C virus-related arthritis and rheumatoid arthritis: could they be different aspects of the same disease?
abstract: The role played by HCV in the genesis of many autoimmune disorders has been reported in several studies. In particular, the onset of arthritis has been described in about 2-3 percent of HCV infection cases. At present, this HCV-related arthritis is classified as a reactive arthritis, but a real distinction of this form from classical rheumatoid arthritis is often difficult. In this presentation, the Authors distinguish two arthritic forms observed in HCV-related arthritis patients: one, characterized by asymmetrical oligoarticular-involvement, and another, with poly-articular symmetrical involvement. The Authors suggest that the latter can be considered as a form of rheumatoid arthritis, because of the similarity of the main clinical aspects and laboratory findings (rheumatoid factor, anti-cyclic citrullinated peptide antibodies) to those of classical rheumatoid arthritis, which make the two forms indistinguishable. Therefore, HCV could be considered the etiologic agent of a limited number of cases of rheumatoid arthritis.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Riccio
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Tarantino
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001170:Arthritis, Infectious / Q000209:etiology*; D001172:Arthritis, Rheumatoid / Q000209:etiology*; D005260:Female; D006526:Hepatitis C / Q000150:complications*; D006801:Humans; D007371:Interferon-gamma / Q000097:blood; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012217:Rheumatoid Factor / Q000502:physiology
chemical_list: D007371:Interferon-gamma; D012217:Rheumatoid Factor