Reiter's Syndrome.

Last updated Friday, February 11, 2005

Diagnosis and evaluation

Diagnosis

Getting a definite diagnosis of Reiter's syndrome may take some time, since diagnosis primarily depends on a physical examination showing characteristic physical findings or signs of the disease.

Sometimes not all signs are present at once, and not all people exhibit all of them. The more physical findings you experience, the more definite the diagnosis.

Certain features, especially the skin lesions, are so characteristic that their presence, along with joint involvement, is sufficient to make the diagnosis of Reiter's syndrome.

Uncertainty in making a diagnosis happens if joint inflammation occurs without the other symptoms. In such cases, a doctor may suspect Reiter's and perform a test for the HLA-B27 genetic type. If that test is positive, or if the spine and sacroiliac joints are involved, your doctor can at least tell that the disease is in the family of the spondyloarthropathies. In those cases, a physician may make a diagnosis of incomplete Reiter's syndrome. You may need to see an arthritis specialist.

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