Introduction:

Adult Still disease (ASD) is a rare disorder that can lead to serious complications; however, risk factors associated with the development of this disease, its prognostic factors, and aspects related to relapse and steroids refractoriness in individuals with this condition are not yet clearly known. Objectives: To describe the clinical behavior of ASD and determine factors associated with steroid refractoriness, relapse, and complications in patients with this condition.

Materials and methods:

A retrospective cohort study was conducted in 45 patients diagnosed with ASD between January 2007 and January 2017 in 2 reference hospitals. Summary statistics are presented. In addition, two logistic regression analysis were conducted in order to identify possible factors explaining steroid refractoriness, relapses, and the development of complications in the study population.

Results:

Participants' average age was 42.13 ± 15.8 years. Out of the 45 patients, 23 (51.1%) were women, 42 (93.3%) were prescribed steroids, and of these, 13 (32%) were considered as steroid refractory. Complications were observed in 12 individuals (26.7%), and their frequency was higher in patients whose maximum body temperature was higher than 39°C. Finally, 33 (73.3% patients had a follow-up greater than 1 year, of which 17 (37.8%) suffered relapses; in addition, relapses were more frequent in patients who were steroid refractory or those with splenomegaly.

Conclusion:

Patients who were prescribed any type of biological therapy were more steroid refractory. On the other hand, steroid refractoriness and splenomegaly were associated with a higher frequency of relapses, while having a body temperature >39°C was associated with developing complications.

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