Relapsing polychondritis

Abstract

Introduction: Relapsing polychondritis is a chronic, autoimmune disease, infrequent, with an incidence of 3:5 per million, affects women and men equally, with recurrent inflammation of cartilage, pinna, nose, laryngotracheal or other cartilage.

Objective: To present an infrequent case of relapsing polychondritis.

Clinical case: Female patient, who from the age of twelve began with joint pain, especially in the knee, dyspnea that has progressed over time, dysphonia that became evident until it reached total aphonia, hearing loss that was initially mild unilateral, until reach moderate bilateral, stenosis of the first tracheal rings for which a tracheostomy was performed.

Conclusions: Relapsing polychondritis is an autoimmune disease, which has repercussions on multiple devices and systems, and is sometimes difficult to diagnose if its initial symptoms are not alterations of the auricle and cartilage of the nose, as described in this patient; the fundamental medical treatment is steroids and immunosuppressants, survival after 8 years of evolution is 94%.