Symptoms of Mixed Connective Tissue Disease

Mixed connective tissue disease is a chronic disease which can be classified as an autoimmune disorder whose symptoms and signs are a collection of signs of diseases including lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, scleroderma and other such connective tissue diseases. This disorder is caused when 2 or more than two connective tissue disorders affect a person.

When the signs first appear, it may mean that the person has one of the many rheumatic disorders or diseases. But in mixed connective tissue disease, the signs aren’t as widespread as in the case of individual disorders of this category. The following are some of the main symptoms of mixed connective tissue disease:

Symptoms of Mixed Connective Tissue Disease

  • Almost all persons who are suffering from mixed connective tissue disorder experience pain in two or more than two of the joints. Infact most people who have this condition, may experience swollen or deformed joints which are a part of the rheumatoid arthritis.
  • Another sign which occurs many years after it starts its affect on the body is the Raynaud’s phenomenon.
  • A person with mixed connective tissue disorder may also observe many skin changes which may include red patches over the knuckles, violet coloured discolouration of the eyelids and hair loss all over the body.
  • Abnormal opening up of the capillaries of the hands as well as the face may also occur and this opening might also take the form of a tumour in the later stages.
  • Another very common sign of mixed connective tissue disorder is swollen hands. Infact, hands get swelled so much that over a period of time they start looking like sausages.
  • Muscles tend to get tender and very weak in the case where a person is suffering from a combination of connective tissue disorders.
  • People with this condition might also experience a difficulty in swallowing food and keeping it in the stomach for too long.
  • A person suffering from mixed connective tissue condition is likely to feel loss of sensation in the nerves, especially those of the face and the head.
  • Most people suffering from this disease might be suffering from some or the other kind of a lung disorder. Some symptoms of this are inflammation of the lining of the lungs and also that of inside the chest. This might lead to difficulty in breathing which is a sign.
  • Very few people suffering from mixed connective tissue disorder might also undergo a kidney disease.