RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN AUTOANTIBODY AND DERMATOSIS IN MYELODYSPLASTIC SYNDROME

We analyzed the relationship between autoantibody and dermatosis in 22 patients with myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS). These MDS patients cons isted of five cases with refractory anemia (RA), three RA with ringed sideroblasts (RARS), eight RA with excess of blasts (RAEB), four RAEB in transformation (RAEB-t), and two chronic myelomonocytic leukemia (C MMoL) according to the FAB classification of MDS. The autoantibody was detected in seven patients, of whom four had rheumatoid factor (RF) a nd three had antinuclear antibody (ANA). Neither RF-positive nor ANA-p ositive MDS patients had other autoantibodies. Dermatosis was observed in nine cases of these 22 MDS patients. Five of 7 MDS patients (71%) with autoantibody developed dermatosis in their clinical course, as di d four of 15 MDS patients (27%) without autoantibody. All four MDS pat ients with RF had dermatosis such as anaphylactoid purpura, xerotic de rmatitis, thrombophlebitis, ephelides, and genital herpes. One of thre e MDS patients with ANA had pruritis senilis. The four MDS patients wi thout autoantibody had dermatosis such as erythema nodosum, ichthyosis vulgaris, Sweet syndrome, and thrombophlebitis. Three of four MDS pat ients with RF bad normal liver function tests, while three MDS patient s with ANA showed liver dysfunction. Our studies presented hem suggest ed that the dermatosis could develop frequently in MDS patients with a utoantibody and that RF was closely related to development of dermatos is in MDS patients, although the dermatosis is not specially fixed.