Abstract
It is well known that immunodeficient patients suffering from HIV infection, blood diseases or collagen diseases, tend to have the complication of toxoplasmosis. We reported two male patients complicated by collagen disease and toxoplasmosis. In Case 1, a 49-year-old male patient with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE)- scleroderma (SSc) overlap syndrome developed muscle symptoms similar to those from dermatomyositis. We finally diagnosed him as having toxoplasmosis, because of the high titer of anti-toxoplasma antibody and of the rapid disappearance of the symptoms after treatment with anti-toxoplasma agents. In Case 2, a 56-year-old male patient with dermatomyositis, showed a visual defect caused by toxoplasmosis. Many previous reports have shown that titers of anti-toxoplasma antibody in patients with PM/DM were significantly higher than in those with other diseases. However, our assessment of the titers in 190 patients with collagen disease showed no significant differences among various collagen diseases.
