Polychondrosis is a rare disease that affects cartilage and other tissues including the ears, nose, joint, respiratory tract. Cartilage is the connective tissue of the body that becomes inflamed due to the disease. Polychondrosis is also known as Relapsing Polychondritis is an autoimmune disease with a chronic condition. The condition may vary from mild to severe.
Symptoms of Polychondrosis
Polychondritis involves impairment in the ears, nose, joints, and cardiovascular system. The symptoms may include:
Causes of Polychondrosis
The causes of polychondritis are unknown, though there are factors that responsible for the cause are:
Certain drugs are responsible for the imbalance in the immune system. The disorders of the immune system may cause damage to the cartilage.
Diagnosis
Relapsing Polychondritis develops symptoms that determine the diagnosis of the affected part. The symptoms involve the following:
Doctors may suggest following tests by observing the severity and symptoms associated with the conditions. It cannot be cured completely. Doctors suggest tests including:
Doctors recommend a biopsy to see the affected cartilage tissue by demonstrating the breakdown and inflammation of the cartilage. Liver function tests are necessary for vasculitis screening test for syphilis, and purified protein derivative test to eliminate tuberculosis infection. Sputum cultures and acid-fast bacilli are suggested by doctors to patients with respiratory problems. Acid-fast bacilli cultures, fungal and bacterial cultures are necessary for the cartilage biopsies from the airways. In case of fever, a blood test is required to eliminate meningitis.
Imaging tests are part of the diagnosis, tests like CT scan, Chest X-rays, PET scan, MRI are also included.
Treatment and Medications
The disease is rare and there is no such therapy to treat the condition. doctors may prescribe the treatment and medications as per symptoms and affected parts of the body. The treatment may include :
Suresh Hospital’s ../department of Allergy and Auto-Immune system
Allergy is though not contagious, there are rare allergic and auto-immune disorders that affect the health condition. The medications are prescribed as per the severity of the symptoms. Relapsing polychondritis causes inflammation, pain, swelling in the joints and cartilage. At Suresh Hospital, we have every facility to serve auto-immune disorders. Imaging tests like PET, MRI, are done here. We provide immunotherapy too. We care for the wellness of our patients.