Heterotopic ossification: a challenging complication of total hip arthroplastyrisk factors, diagnosis, prophylaxis and treatment

Abstract

Remitting seronegative symmetrical synovitis with pitting edema (RS3PE) is a rare form of inflammatory arthritis, most often affecting elderly individuals and characterized by polyarthritis most commonly affecting the hands and feet in a symmetric fashion, associated with pitting edema on the dorsum of the hands (and occasionally the feet). Symptoms often spontaneously remit and are usually very responsive to low dose glucocorticoids. RS3PE has been considered as forme fruste of polymyalgia rheumatica. It can also occur as a paraneoplastic syndrome and can sometimes be a harbinger of malignancy. This article describes a case of RS3PE, followed by a review of literature about this very intriguing rheumatologic disease.