Objective To evaluate autoimmune disease progression in asymptomatic and pauci-symptomatic mothers of children with neonatal lupus (NL). Methods Clinical information on mothers enrolled in the Research Registry for NL (RRNL) was obtained from medical records. Genotyping was performed for −308A/G tumour necrosis factor (TNF)α, 869T/C transforming growth factor (TGF)β and −889C/T interleukin (IL)1α. Results Of the 321 mothers enrolled, 229 had at least 6 months of follow-up. Of the 51 mothers who were asymptomatic at the NL child’s birth, 26 progressed: 12 developed pauci-undifferentiated autoimmune syndrome (pauci-UAS), 2 poly-UAS, 7 SS, 4 SLE and 1 SLE/SS. The median time to develop any symptom was 3.15 years. Of the 37 mothers classified as pauci-UAS at the NL child’s birth, 16 progressed: 5 developed poly-UAS, 6 Sjögren syndrome (SS), 4 systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and 1 SLE/SS. Of the pauci-UAS mothers enrolled within 1 year, the median time to progression was 6.7 years. Four mothers developed lupus nephritis (two asymptomatic, two pauci-UAS). The probability of an asymptomatic mother developing SLE by 10 years was 18.6%, and developing probable/definite SS was 27.9%. NL manifestations did not predict disease progression in an asymptomatic mother. Mothers with anti-Sjögren syndrome A antigen (SSA/)Ro and anti-Sjögren syndrome B antigen (SSB)/La were nearly twice as likely to develop an autoimmune disease as mothers with anti-SSA/Ro only. Only TGFβT/T was significantly higher in SLE mothers compared to asymptomatic mothers (p = 0.03). Conclusions Continued follow-up of asymptomatic NL mothers is warranted since nearly half progress, albeit few develop SLE. While the anti-SSB/La antibodies may be a risk factor for progression, further work is needed to determine reliable biomarkers in otherwise healthy women with anti-SSA/Ro antibodies identified solely because of an NL child.

Mycoplasmas, including Ureaplasma and Mycoplasma species, are uncommon but important causes of septic arthritis, especially affecting immunosuppressed patients. Many of the reported cases have been associated with congenital immunodeficiency disorders, especially hypogammaglobulinemia. Mycoplasmas are difficult to grow in the laboratory, and these infections may be underdiagnosed using culture techniques. We report a case of a 21-year-old woman with juvenile idiopathic arthritis and hip arthroplasties treated with rituximab and adalimumab who developed urogenital infections and soft tissue abscesses followed by knee arthritis with negative routine cultures. Ureaplasma species was identified from synovial fluid on 2 separate occasions using a broad-range 16S ribosomal RNA gene polymerase chain reaction. Azithromycin led to rapid improvement in symptoms, but after completion of therapy, involvement of the hip prosthesis became apparent, and again, 16S rRNA gene polymerase chain reaction was positive for Ureaplasma species. The literature is reviewed with a discussion of risk factors for Mycoplasma septic arthritis, clinical presentation, methods of diagnosis, and treatment.

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Image 1. Whole body bone scintigraphy utilizing Tc-99m MDA radiotracer. Panel A: prior to voriconazole discontinuation, demonstrates multiple areas of increased radiotracer uptake consistent with osteoblastic lesions throughout the axial and appendicular skeleton (arrows). Panel B: 2 months following voriconazole discontinuation, shows physiologic radiotracer distribution with no evidence of the previously noted lesions. Of note, the patient previously had a right nephrectomy for removal of a renal cell carcinoma, thus explaining the absence of its shadow on the posterior scintigraphs.

IMPORTANCE Dermatologists, pulmonologists, and rheumatologists study and treat patients with sarcoidosis with cutaneous manifestations. The validity of cutaneous sarcoidosis outcome instruments for use across medical specialties remains unknown.OBJECTIVE To assess the reliability and validity of cutaneous sarcoidosis outcome instruments for use by dermatologists and nondermatologists treating sarcoidosis. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTSWe performed a cross-sectional study evaluating the use of the Cutaneous Sarcoidosis Activity and Morphology Instrument (CSAMI) and Sarcoidosis Activity and Severity Index (SASI) to assess cutaneous sarcoidosis disease severity and the Physician's Global Assessment (PGA) as a reference instrument. Four dermatologists, 3 pulmonologists, and 4 rheumatologists evaluated facial cutaneous sarcoidosis in 13 patients treated at a cutaneous sarcoidosis clinic in a 1-day study on October 24, 2014; data analysis was performed from November through December 2014. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES Interrater and intrarater reliability and convergent validity, with correlation with quality-of-life measures as the secondary outcome. RESULTS All instruments demonstrated excellent intrarater reliability. Interrater reliability (reported as intraclass correlation coefficient [95% CI]) was good for the CSAMI Activity scale (0.69 [0.51-0.87]) and PGA (0.66 [0.47-0.85]), weak for the CSAMI Damage scale (0.26 [0.11-0.52]), and excellent for the modified Facial SASI (0.78 [0.63-0.91]). The CSAMI Activity scale and modified Facial SASI showed moderate correlations (95% CI) with the PGA (0.67 [0.57-0.75] and 0.57 [0.45-0.66], respectively). The CSAMI Activity scale but not the modified Facial SASI showed significant correlations (95% CI) with quality-of-life instruments, such as the Dermatology Life Quality Index (Spearman rank correlation, 0.70 [0.25-0.90]) and the Skin Stigma raw score of the Sarcoidosis Assessment Tool (Pearson product moment correlation, 0.56 [0.01-0.85]). CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCEThe CSAMI and SASI were reliable and valid in assessing cutaneous sarcoidosis among our diverse group of specialists. The CSAMI Activity score also correlated with quality-of-life measures and suggested construct validity. These results lend credibility to expand the use of the CSAMI and SASI by dermatologists and nondermatologists in assessing cutaneous sarcoidosis disease activity.