PREVALENCE OF ANTIKERATIN ANTIBODIES IN GREEK PATIENTS WITH RHEUMATOID-ARTHRITIS - A CLINICAL, SEROLOGIC, AND IMMUNOGENETIC STUDY

Objective. The presence of antikeratin antibodies (AKA) has been assoc iated with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) in patients from north and centra l Europe. Our aim was to investigate the prevalence of AKA in Greek pa tients with RA. Methods, One hundred and twenty two sera of creek pati ents with RA were tested for the presence of AKA by an indirect immuno fluorescence technique, and HLA-DR typing was performed by restriction fragment length polymorphism. Results. Nineteen of 122 (16%) Greek pa tients with RA were positive for AKA. The percentage of AKA in Greek p atients with RA is lower than described previously. These antibodies c orrelated with a male preponderance (p < 0.01) and were associated wit h the presence of rheumatoid factor (RF) (p < 0.05) and with HLA-DR1 a ntigen (p < 0.05). Conclusion, Our results suggest that AKA are presen t infrequently in Greek patients with RA, Their presence was found to be associated with RF and HLA-DR1 antigen. This emphasizes the differe nt clinical expression of RA in Greece.