Journal article
Anti-Nuclear Antibody (ANA) Positivity and Nuclear Antigen Reactivity in Patients with Joint Hypermobility Syndrome/Hypermobile Ehlers Danlos Syndrome (JHS/hEDS)
Biomedicines, Vol.13(9), 2134
09/01/2025
DOI: 10.3390/biomedicines13092134
PMCID: PMC12467105
PMID: 41007697
Abstract
Background/Objectives: To compare clinical features of patients with joint hypermobility syndrome/hypermobile Ehlers Danlos Syndrome (JHS/hEDS) who tested positive or negative for anti-nuclear antibodies (ANA), and to determine antibody titers, staining patterns, and reactivity to common nuclear autoantigens. Methods: ANA results were determined by Hep2 immunofluorescence assay. Reactivity to the most common nuclear autoantigens was measured by the Multiplex assay. Clinical manifestations were compared between three subgroups: total ANA+, ANA+ who did not have evidence of systemic autoimmune inflammatory disease (SAID), and ANA−. Results: Of 289 patients, 210 patients had a Beighton score > 5 and were tested for ANA antibodies. One hundred and thirty-one patients had a positive ANA test. Twenty patients in this subgroup were classified as SAID+ while the remaining 111 patients did not meet criteria for any systemic disease. Speckled staining was the most observed pattern in both ANA+SAID+ (75.00%) and ANA+SAID− (72.97%) subgroups. In the latter subgroup, the target of nuclear autoreactivity remained elusive in 80% of patients. The most common clinical manifestations were diffuse arthralgias, myofascial pain, sicca symptoms, Raynaud’s phenomenon, gastrointestinal manifestations, and chronic fatigue. Joint dislocations were observed more commonly in the ANA− subgroup compared to ANA+SAID− patients (30.38% vs. 12.61%, adjusted p < 0.05). Conclusions: Similar clinical characteristics were observed in ANA+ and ANA− subgroups of JHS/hEDS, except for joint dislocations which were more common in the ANA− subgroup. The target of ANA reactivity was unknown in 80% of ANA+JHS/hEDS patients and needs to be determined in future studies.
Details
- Title: Subtitle
- Anti-Nuclear Antibody (ANA) Positivity and Nuclear Antigen Reactivity in Patients with Joint Hypermobility Syndrome/Hypermobile Ehlers Danlos Syndrome (JHS/hEDS)
- Creators
- Lindsay Moy - University of IowaAleksander Lenert - University of IowaPetar Lenert - University of Iowa
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Publication Details
- Biomedicines, Vol.13(9), 2134
- DOI
- 10.3390/biomedicines13092134
- PMID
- 41007697
- PMCID
- PMC12467105
- NLM abbreviation
- Biomedicines
- ISSN
- 2227-9059
- eISSN
- 2227-9059
- Publisher
- MDPI
- Grant note
- NIH: K23 AR082966 Kelting Foundation
A. Lenert is supported by the NIH K23 AR082966 grant; P. Lenert's work is in part supported by the grant from the Kelting Foundation.
- Language
- English
- Date published
- 09/01/2025
- Academic Unit
- Immunology; Internal Medicine
- Record Identifier
- 9984958292102771
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