propylthiouracil and Purpura--Thrombocytopenic--Idiopathic

Graves' disease (GD) has been reported to be frequently complicated with other autoimmune diseases. However, it is rarely complicated with scleroderma-polymyositis overlap syndrome. Recently, we encountered a 35-year-old woman who developed GD and immune thrombocytopenic purpura during follow-up observation of scleroderma-dermatomyositis overlap syndrome. Platelet counts recovered after high-dose gamma-globulin therapy and bolus methylprednisolone therapy. The present case is the first report of a combination of scleroderma, dermatomyositis, GD, and immune thrombocytopenic purpura. The patient was anti-Ku antibody-positive and had relatively low natural killer T cell counts, both of which might contribute to the complication of multiple autoimmune diseases.

Topics: Adult; Anti-Inflammatory Agents; Antigens, Nuclear; Antithyroid Agents; Autoantibodies; Dermatomyositis; DNA Helicases; DNA-Binding Proteins; Female; Graves Disease; Humans; Ku Autoantigen; Methimazole; Platelet Transfusion; Propylthiouracil; Purpura, Thrombocytopenic, Idiopathic; Scleroderma, Systemic; Steroids