Inflammatory joint disease and severe ischemia of the extremities revealing thromboangiitis obliterans in a female

Thromboangiitis obliterans (or Buerger disease) is a rare vascular disease that selectively affects young males who are inveterate smokers. We report a case in a young female smoker who presented with recurrent episodes of polyarthralgia and distal extremity ischemia. The initial diagnosis was connective tissue disease, and the correct diagnosis was established only 7 years after symptom onset. Joint manifestations are common in thromboangiitis obliterans and usually antedate the diagnosis, which should be considered in patients with superficial venous thrombosis, upper limb ischemia, or Raynaud's phenomenon. This is true even in females, as shown by the case described here.