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Relapsing Polychondritis

By

Alana M. Nevares

, MD, The University of Vermont Medical Center

Reviewed/Revised Oct 2022
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Topic Resources

Relapsing polychondritis is a rare, episodic, inflammatory, and destructive disorder involving primarily cartilage of the ear and nose but also potentially affecting the eyes, tracheobronchial tree, heart valves, kidneys, joints, skin, and blood vessels. Diagnosis is by a combination of clinical, laboratory, imaging, and rarely biopsy findings. Treatment usually requires prednisone and other immunosuppressants.

Symptoms and Signs of Relapsing Polychondritis

Acute pain, erythema, and swelling most commonly affect the pinna cartilage. Nasal cartilage inflammation is the next most common manifestation, followed by arthritis that varies from arthralgias to symmetric or asymmetric nondeforming arthritis involving large and small joints, with a predilection for the costochondral joints and knees.

The next most common manifestations, in decreasing order of frequency, are inflammation of the

  • Eye (eg, conjunctivitis, scleritis, iritis, keratitis, chorioretinitis)

  • Cartilaginous tissue of the larynx, trachea, or bronchi (causing hoarseness, cough, and tenderness over the laryngeal cartilage)

  • Internal ear

  • Cardiovascular system (eg, aortic regurgitation, mitral regurgitation, pericarditis, myocarditis, aortic aneurysms, aortitis)

  • Kidney

  • Skin

Bouts of acute inflammation heal over weeks to months, with recurrences over several years.

Diagnosis of Relapsing Polychondritis

  • Clinical criteria

  • Sometimes biopsy

Diagnosis of relapsing polychondritis is established if the patient develops at least 3 of the following:

  • Bilateral chondritis of the external ears

  • Inflammatory polyarthritis

  • Nasal chondritis

  • Ocular inflammation

  • Respiratory tract chondritis

  • Auditory or vestibular dysfunction

Biopsy of involved cartilage, most often the pinna, is helpful if clinical diagnosis is not clear-cut but is rarely required.

Laboratory tests are not specific but are done when necessary to help exclude other disorders. Synovial fluid analysis reveals mild inflammatory changes that are nonspecific but help rule out an infectious process. Blood tests may show normocytic-normochromic anemia, leukocytosis, elevated erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) or gamma-globulin levels, and occasionally positive rheumatoid factor, antinuclear antibodies (ANA), or, in up to 25% of patients, antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibodies (ANCA). Abnormal renal function may indicate an associated glomerulonephritis. A positive c-ANCA test (ANCA that are reactive mainly to proteinase-3) may suggest granulomatosis with polyangiitis Diagnosis Granulomatosis with polyangiitis is characterized by necrotizing granulomatous inflammation, small- and medium-sized vessel vasculitis, and focal necrotizing glomerulonephritis, often with crescent... read more Diagnosis , which can rarely cause chondritis.

The upper and lower airways should be evaluated, including complete spirometric testing and chest CT, when the diagnosis is made.

Older male patients with relapsing polychondritis who develop macrocytic anemia and thrombocytopenia may have VEXAS (Vacuoles, E1 enzyme, X-linked, Autoinflammatory, Somatic) syndrome, a rare disorder caused by a mutation in the UBA1 gene that encodes the enzyme-1-activating enzyme (E1) involved in intracellular destruction of defective proteins. Diagnosis is confirmed by bone marrow biopsy demonstrating vacuoles in blood precursor cells.

Prognosis for Relapsing Polychondritis

Mortality rates have decreased with newer therapies. Survival is now 94% after 8 years, with death typically resulting from collapse of laryngeal and tracheal structures or from cardiovascular complications such as large-vessel aneurysm, cardiac valvular insufficiency, or systemic vasculitis.

Patients with VEXAS syndrome may develop hematologic neoplasms such as myelodysplastic syndrome and multiple myeloma.

Treatment of Relapsing Polychondritis

  • Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs or dapsone for mild ear disease

  • Corticosteroids

  • Sometimes methotrexate or other immunosuppressants (eg, cyclosporine, cyclophosphamide, azathioprine, anti-tumor necrosis factor drugs)

Mild recurrent ear disease may respond to nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs in anti-inflammatory doses, or oral dapsone (50 to 100 mg once a day). However, most patients are treated with oral prednisone 30 to 60 mg once a day, with tapering of the dose as soon as there is a clinical response. Some patients require chronic use. In such patients, oral methotrexate 15 to 20 mg once a week can reduce the requirement for corticosteroids. Very severe cases may require other immunosuppressants, such as cyclosporine, cyclophosphamide, anti-tumor necrosis factor drugs (eg, infliximab, etanercept), or azathioprine. None of these therapies has been tested in controlled trials or has been shown to decrease mortality. If tracheal narrowing causes stridor, a tracheostomy or stent may be needed.

Endotracheal intubation can be technically difficult because of tracheal involvement and narrowing; also, intratracheal manipulation can lead to life-threatening postanesthetic deterioration by causing further glottic or subglottic inflammation. Thus, endotracheal intubation should be avoided whenever possible (eg, instead using local and regional anesthesia). When endotracheal intubation is unavoidable, preparations should be made for emergency cricothyrotomy.

More extensive tracheobronchial collapse may require tracheal reconstruction. Eye disease may sometimes be recalcitrant to treatment, especially when involving the sclera, and has a poor prognosis. Patients on long-term corticosteroid therapy should receive osteoporosis prophylaxis Prevention Osteoporosis is a progressive metabolic bone disease that decreases bone mineral density (bone mass per unit volume), with deterioration of bone structure. Skeletal weakness leads to fractures... read more Prevention .

Key Points

  • Consider relapsing polychondritis if patients develop inflammation of the pinna or nasal cartilage, particularly with symptoms and signs compatible with respiratory tract chondritis or unexplained arthritis, ocular inflammation, or auditory or vestibular dysfunction.

  • Biopsy the affected cartilage only if necessary to confirm the diagnosis.

  • Treat mild ear disease with nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs or dapsone.

  • Treat more severe disease with corticosteroids and sometimes methotrexate or other immunosuppressants.

  • Avoid endotracheal intubation or, if it is unavoidable, prepare for emergency cricothyrotomy.

Drugs Mentioned In This Article

Drug Name Select Trade
Deltasone, Predone, RAYOS, Sterapred, Sterapred DS
Aczone
Jylamvo, Otrexup, Rasuvo, RediTrex, Rheumatrex, Trexall, Xatmep
Cequa, Gengraf , Klarity-C, Neoral, Restasis, Sandimmune, SangCya, Verkazia, Vevye
Cyclophosphamide, Cytoxan, Neosar
Azasan, Imuran
AVSOLA, INFLECTRA, Remicade, RENFLEXIS, Zymfentra
Enbrel
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NOTE: This is the Professional Version. CONSUMERS: View Consumer Version
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