[Osteoarticular pathology, hypercalcemia and adrenal insufficiency. Analysis of 113 cases of adrenal insufficiency].

Rheumatologic manifestations, ectopic calcification and hypercalcemia of adrenal insufficiency (IS) were evaluated by a prospective study (S1) of 20 patients with IS and a retrospective analysis of 93 cases of IS (S2). When routine investigations were conducted they revealed very frequent osteoarticular lesions (19 of 20 cases, S1). Painful manifestations (arthralgia, myalgia), variable with fluctuations in the IS affection were observed in both groups (S1, S2). Analysis of group S1 showed a high number of periarthritic attacks (9 of 20 cases), and a significantly higher incidence of tendinous calcifications (p less than 0.03) and of multiple tendinous calcification disease (MCTM) (p less than 0.05) in relation to 20 matched controls. This combined affection MCTM-IS has not been reported previously. Calcification could be due to glucocorticoid deficiency, the only common factor for all cases, and the frequent calcification of ear pinna (greater than 30% of cases in the 2 groups) could be related to the same deficiency. Finally, reported in the 81 case-reports were 18 episodes of hypercalcemia, emphasizing the unrecognized frequency of this disturbance whose determining role is unclear.