[Mixed connective tissue disease].

Mixed connective tissue disease can be regarded as a distinct rheumatic disease syndrome. It can be differentiated from the other systemic rheumatic diseases and overlap syndromes, and has its own diagnostic criteria. The article presents symptoms, treatment, outcome, classification and diagnosis of mixed connective tissue disease. The most usual symptoms are Raynaud's phenomenon, swelling of the hands, polyarthritis, muscle weakness, oesophageal hypomotility and pulmonary disease. The recommended therapy should be based on patterns of involvement of organ systems and the severity of the disease. In severe cases the treatment is often a combination of corticosteroids and cytostatics. Due to severe impacts on lungs and kidneys it seems necessary to modify earlier predictions of a generally favourable outcome in patients with mixed connective tissue disease.