RESEARCH - Longterm outcome of treatment of Felty's syndrome with IM gold: case reports and recommendations for management.

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J Rheumatol. 2005 Jan;32(1):20-6.

Longterm outcome of treatment of Felty's syndrome with intramuscular gold:

case reports and recommendations for management.

Almoallim H, Klinkhoff A.

Division of Rheumatology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British

Columbia, Canada.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the incidence, complications, and course of Felty's

syndrome (FS) in patients treated with intramuscular (IM) gold. METHODS:

Retrospective chart review of all FS cases (1979 to 2003) was conducted in

the Pack Arthritis Centre (MPAC) gold clinic. FS was diagnosed if

patients had rheumatoid arthritis (RA; American College of Rheumatology

criteria) and persistent leukopenia [white blood cell (WBC) count < 4] in

the absence of other known causes of leukopenia. Splenomegaly was not part

of the inclusion criteria. RESULTS: Thirteen patients with FS were

identified in the gold clinic population. The mean age at diagnosis of FS

was 58.7 years and the mean duration of RA at time of diagnosis was 6.9

years. The weekly dose of gold ranged from 10 mg to 50 mg depending on

tolerability. Gold therapy resulted in normalization of the WBC count in 9

of 13 patients. The mean time to normalization of the WBC was 40 weeks. Only

one patient with FS had experienced recurrent infectious complications from

FS, and this did not recur after gold treatment was initiated. No patient

had vasculitis.

CONCLUSION: In our gold clinic population FS is a mild disease and is rarely

associated with infectious complications. Gold is an effective treatment of

FS.

PMID: 15630719

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve & db=PubMed & list_uids=1\

5630719 & dopt=Abstract

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