Subacromial bursitis with rice bodies as a presenting feature of seronegative rheumatoid arthritis

A case of rheumatoid arthritis with bilateral shoulder bursitis accompanied by gas image

We experienced a case of bilateral shoulder bursitis with gas images in a rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patient. A 60-year-old man with RA had been treated with weekly methotrexate 10 mg and daily prednisolone (PSL) 10 mg for 7 months. Generalized pain, especially in the bilateral shoulder joints, developed and exacerbated daily with increased C-reactive protein (CRP) level. Despite the initiation of biweekly sarilumab 200 mg, joint symptoms and CRP level continued to worsen. Computed tomography (CT) scan to determine the cause of severe shoulder inflammation revealed low absorption areas with contrast effects at the margins around the bilateral shoulder joints, accompanied by internal gas images. In addition, magnetic resonance imaging demonstrated subacromial bursae and coracoid bursae and bursitis, leading to the suspicion of abscess formation depending on the presence of gas image. In spite of antimicrobial therapy, arthralgia did not improve, and a CT-guided arthrocentesis of the left shoulder joint resulted in negative findings of infection in culture and pathological examinations. Switching treatment to intensive anti-inflammatory therapy with high-dose steroids and etanercept finally improved symptoms and CRP levels associated with the reduction of low absorption areas and disappearance of gas images at bilateral shoulder joints. Our case indicated that bursitis with gas image in RA patients involves unusual pathophysiology and requires intensive anti-rheumatic treatment.

Infectious Rice Body Formation in a Patient with Anti-aminoacyl-t RNA Synthetase Syndrome: A Case Report

CASE

An adult woman with anti-aminoacyl-t RNA synthetase syndrome developed pain and swelling of both hands and her left forearm, initially diagnosed as seronegative rheumatoid arthritis. Surgical exploration revealed multiple "rice bodies," and the specimen grew Mycobacterium intracellurale. She subsequently received antibiotic therapy.

CONCLUSION

In the diagnosis of rice body formation in musculoskeletal tissues, it is necessary to consider not only rheumatic diseases but also mycobacterial infection.

Rheumatoid subacromial-subdeltoid bursitis with rice bodies: A case report

Subacromial-subdeltoid bursitis of a shoulder with rice bodies is relatively uncommon. The understanding of the pathogenesis of rice body formation is yet approximate only but some clinical conditions like rheumatoid arthritis, tuberculous arthritis, seronegative inflammatory arthritis, juvenile rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis are related to it. We describe a case of a 44 years old female with subacromial-subdeltoid bursitis of her right shoulder with numerous rice bodies' formation as a presenting feature of rheumatoid arthritis. She underwent subacromial and subdeltoid bursectomy with the removal of rice bodies and had immediate improvement of symptoms.

Severe Sub-Acromial Bursitis with Rice Bodies in a Patient with Rheumatoid Arthritis: A Case Report and Review of Literature

Multiple rice body formation is a rare presentation of chronic sub-acromial bursitis secondary to extensive underlying rheumatoid arthritis, sero-negative inflammatory arthritis or tuberculous joints. Although there is usually an accompanying inflammatory arthropathy, it can occur in the absence of any underlying systemic disorder. We report a case of five years old neglected rice body deposition in shoulder in a 54-years old lady diagnosed to be having rheumatoid arthritis. After initial investigations, arthroscopic removal of rice bodies with bursa excision relieved the symptoms. The underlying rheumatic condition continued its course, generally sparing the involved shoulder joint. We suggest thorough examination for systemic rheumatologic disease in patients diagnosed with such lesions.

Ultrasonographic and computed tomographic features of rice bodies in an Arabian horse with atlantal bursitis

A 19-year-old castrated Arabian male horse presented for evaluation of a firm mass at the dorsal cervical region. Ultrasonography and computed tomography revealed multiple well defined fusiform structures within the atlantal bursa. Multiple glossy smooth, white to yellowish, flattened fusiform structures were removed surgically. These structures were composed of dense fibrin with some leukocytes and red blood cells. The imaging and histopathological features of these structures were similar to chronic 'rice bodies' reported in humans with bursitis or tenosynovitis. This is the first veterinary report describing the imaging features of 'rice bodies' in a horse with atlantal bursitis.

Candida septic arthritis with rice body formation: a case report and review of literature

Rice body formation in a joint or bursa is a rare condition, and is usually associated with rheumatoid arthritis or tuberculous arthritis. Here we describe a case of multiple rice body formation in a shoulder joint and in adjacent bursae, which was confirmed to be due to septic arthritis by Candida species. To the best of our knowledge, rice body formation in Candida septic arthritis in an immune-competent patient has not been previously reported.

[Tuberculous rice body synovitis of the shoulder joint]

The clinical presentation of synovitis with rice bodies is found in a few systemic diseases as accompanying manifestations within joints or joint-associated bursa. A 79-year old patient was examined, who had complained of pain and swelling in the left shoulder for a long time. Sonography identified multiple spindle-shaped joint bodies within the joint effusion. MRI showed a large amount of so-called rice bodies with joint effusion in the shoulder and a massive destruction of the rotator cuff of the left shoulder. The histological examination showed a tuberculosis-specific inflammatory response with giant cells and epithelioid granulomas and molecular biological detection of Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Within a few months after surgical removal of the rice bodies from the joint space and the bursa a relapse occurred with repeated synovial effusion followed by a renewed surgical removal of the joint bodies. We describe the rare case of a patient with unilateral musculoskeletal manifestation of tuberculosis presented as synovitis of the left shoulder and the adjacent bursa with rice bodies and accelerated growth trend without coexisting active tuberculosis or tuberculosis in the previous history. Furthermore, a brief summary of the literature is given.

[Giant bursitis with rice bodies of the shoulder/neck region in a patient with rheumatoid arthritis without joint-connection]

Giant bursitis with rice bodies is an important clinical entity recognized in rheumatoid arthritis. Usually the bursitis is connected to a joint space. In this unusual case of a giant bursitis of the shoulder/neck region, no connection to a joint could be found. The bursitis lays directly on a rib. The clinical and radiological findings are presented and this special case is discussed in comparison to the literature.

Rice bodies of synovial origin in the knee joint

Rice bodies are free corpuscles of synovial origin with a cartilage-like appearance that may reach hundreds in number in the intra-articular space. Rheumatologic or infectious pathologies that may produce synovial hypertrophy play a major role in the etiology. Already recognized by rheumatologists, this entity is rarely reported in orthopaedic literature. Numerous particles in the size and form of rice bodies were noted in the knee joint of an 11-year-old patient who underwent arthroscopic drainage and partial synovectomy. Histopathologic examination showed that some of the rice bodies consisted only of fibrin and some of them included a collagenous nucleus surrounded by a fibrin layer. No evidence of recurrence was observed by orthopaedic and rheumatologic evaluations within 2.5 years after the arthroscopic procedure.

Multiple rice body formation in chronic subacromial/subdeltoid bursitis: MR appearances

Multiple rice body formation is an unusual complication of chronic bursitis. Clinically and macroscopically, it can resemble synovial osteochondromatosis. Radiographic and MR appearances, however, may allow an accurate pre-operative diagnosis. The imaging features of two middle-aged women with multiple subacromial/subdeltoid bursa rice bodies are described.