REVIEW  RHEUMATOLOGIC DERMATO(PATHO)LOGY: HOW THE MICROSCOPE CAN HELP THE CLINICIAN Free access

Giornale Italiano di Dermatologia e Venereologia 2018 April;153(2):243-55

DOI: 10.23736/S0392-0488.18.05872-8

Copyright © 2018 EDIZIONI MINERVA MEDICA

language: English

Skin manifestations of rheumatoid arthritis

Viviana LORA ¹, Lorenzo CERRONI ², Carlo COTA ³ ✉

¹ Division of Dermatology, San Gallicano Dermatological Institute, Rome, Italy; ² Research Unit of Dermatopathology, Department of Dermatology, Medical University of Graz, Graz, Austria; ³ Unit of Dermatopathology, San Gallicano Dermatological Institute, Rome, Italy

Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic systemic disease that, in addition to articular involvement, may exhibit a variety of extraarticular manifestations. The skin is frequently involved mainly in the most severe forms of the disease. Rheumatoid nodules, accelerated rheumatoid nodulosis, rheumatoid nodulosis, Felty syndrome, rheumatoid vasculitis, pyoderma gangrenosum, rheumatoid neutrophilic dermatosis, interstitial granulomatous dermatitis, and palisaded neutrophilic granulomatous dermatitis are reviewed both clinically and histologically. Moreover, cutaneous reactions related to treatments of rheumatoid arthritis, in particular to biologic agents, are described. Early recognition of these entities through a clinical and histological correlation permit to optimize the management of patients.

KEY WORDS: Rheumatoid arthritis - Skin - Rheumatoid nodule - Felty syndrome - Dermatitis - Biological factors