Association of hidradenitis suppurativa and familial Mediterranean fever: A case series of 6 patients.

OBJECTIVE

Familial mediterranean fever (FMF) is the most common monogenic autoinflammatory disease. Hidradenitis suppurativa (HS) is an inflammatory cutaneous disease. Those diseases can occur simultaneously among the same individual. Our objective was to describe the features of patients displaying both FMF and HS.

METHODS

We screened the French adult FMF reference center for FMF patients with HS.

RESULTS

Six patients out of 151 (4%) with a median age of 36 years old were concerned. Among them, FMF was symptomatic at a median age of 11.5years old and colchicine was introduced at a median age of 20.5years old. HS was diagnosed at a median age of 31.5years old. An elderly patient displayed AA amyloidosis in the outcome of FMF, with a late diagnosis of HS, with response to anakinra. There was no temporal relation between FMF and HS attacks. Some patients had a persistent inflammatory syndrome under treatment.

CONCLUSIONS

FMF and HS are both inflammatory diseases involving young patients, with HS possibly being an autoinflammatory disease. Although their association seems to be fortuitous, both can induce an important inflammation state that could lead to AA amyloidosis and require a close monitoring of clinical signs and acute-phase reactants. Anakinra was successful in treating the only patient with both HS, FMF and amyloidosis.