Summary
Diabetes mellitus is associated with several non articular rheumatic conditions and is a cause of Charcot's arthropathy. We report three cases of long-standing insulin-dependent diabetics who developed an inflammatory monoarthritis of the ankle. There was no evidence of a peripheral neuropathy or sepsis. They were all seronegative for rheumatoid factor. In two the synovitis persisted; in the third there was a gradual resolution. This type of inflammatory synovitis has not been previously described in diabetes. It developed after a mean duration of diabetes of 34.3 years (range 18–52 years). We suggest that it may be associated with microvascular changes in diabetes, possibly involving hypoxic reperfusion.
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Hall, G.M., Nasser, S.M. & Scott, D.L. Monoarthritis of the ankle in diabetes mellitus without neuropathy: A report of three cases. Clin Rheumatol 9, 225–228 (1990). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02031973
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02031973