Mixed connective tissue disease

In medicine, mixed connective tissue disease, commonly abbreviated as MCTD, is a serious autoimmune disease, in which the body's defense system attacks itself. It is also known as Sharp syndrome.

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Clinical features

MCTD combines features of polymyositis, systemic lupus erythematosus, and systemic scleroderma and is thus considered an overlap syndrome.

MCTD commonly causes:

• joint pain/swelling,
• malaise,
• Raynaud phenomenon,
• muscle inflammation, and
• scarring of the skin of the hand.

It does not typically cause kidney disease or seizures.

Distinguishing laboratory characteristics are a positive, speckled anti-nuclear antibody and an anti-U1-RNP antibody.^[1]

References

1. ^ Venables PJ (2006). "Mixed connective tissue disease". Lupus 15 (3): 132–7. PMID 16634365.