[Pleuropericarditis complicated of tamponade disclosing mixed connective tissue disease. Remission with non-steroidal anti-inflammatory agents. Apropos of a case].

Mixed connective tissue diseases or Sharp's syndrome are inflammatory diseases essentially presenting in the form of joint, muscle and skin manifestations. Pleuropericardial involvement is uncommon and rarely the presenting sign, and tamponade is exceptional. This clinical report concerns a case of pleuropericarditis complicated by tamponade in a 22-year-old man, constituting the presenting sign of Sharp's syndrome. The diagnosis of mixed connective tissue disease was based on the combination of clinical signs and a high serum anti-RNP antinuclear antibody titre. The treatment of the pericarditis is base on prescription of corticosteroids, but non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs were sufficient in our case. Larger effusions may require corticosteroids and pericardial drainage. We report the value of immunological assays in the aetiological assessment of pleuropericarditis in young subjects.