What is pseudogout?

➢ Calcium Pyrophosphate Crystal Deposition Disease ➢ More common in patients over 50 ➢ Causes acute, subacute or chronic arthritis ➢ Affects Knees, wrists, elbows, shoulders and ankles ➢ The knee can show significant chondrocalcinosis lesions even reaching the meniscus and articular cartilage ➢ Most cases are idiopathic ➢ Some cases may occur in people with thyroid disease, hyperparathyroidism, diabetes mellitus or hemochromatosis Morphology: ➢The crystals first develop in the articular cartilage ➢Under polarized microscopy : Individual crystals are rhomboid, 0.5 to 5 μm in greatest dimension and are positively birefringent ➢Inflammation is usually milder than in gout