A case of mixed hereditary gelsolin amyloidosis and hydroxychloroquine induced myopathy

Abstract

Hereditary gelsolin amyloidosis is an adult onset autosomal dominant disease with neurologic, ophthalmologic and dermatologic features that may be mistaken for Sjögren syndrome. We describe a case of a 68 year old female presenting with facial numbness and asymmetry, dry eyes, dry mouth and fatigue, originally diagnosed as Sjögren syndrome and treated with hydroxychloroquine. Due to her insidious progression of facial weakness with associated proximal muscle weakness she underwent a muscle biopsy, which demonstrated features of hydroxychloroquine induced myopathy and amyloid deposition. This subsequently led to targeted genetic testing, revealing an autosomal dominant c.640G > A pathogenic variant of the gelsolin gene. Therefore, this is a unique case of complex muscle pathology with features of a rare hereditary systemic amyloidosis an uncommon drug- induced myopathy.