Rheumatology · Pathway 9

Reactive Arthritis

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Key points

Reactive arthritis is one of the HLA-B27 associated seronegative spondyloarthropathies, encompassing what was previously called Reiter's syndrome
Post-STI form is much more common in men (e.g. 10:1); post-dysenteric form has roughly equal sex incidence
Post-dysenteric causative organisms: Shigella flexneri, Salmonella typhimurium, Salmonella enteritidis, Yersinia enterocolitica, Campylobacter
Post-STI causative organism: Chlamydia trachomatis
Management: symptomatic (analgesia, NSAIDs, intra-articular steroids); sulfasalazine and methotrexate sometimes used for persistent disease