CHLOROQUINE-INDUCED CYTOSOMES WITH CURVILINEAR PROFILES IN MUSCLE

A patient with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) was treated with chloroquine therapy for 4 yr after the onset of her illness. By 9 yr after cessation of chloroquine, muscle weakness developed as part of the SLE. Muscle biopsies (4) performed for diagnostic purposes revealed varying degrees of inflammatory change and distinctive cytosomes with curvilinear profiles (CCP). These CCP were identical to those reported in Batten disease, a degenerative disorder of children which has a clinical course different from SLE. The CCP seen in this case of SLE may be due to the effect of chloroquine on membrane systems within muscle cells. This report calls attention to the fact that CCP are not unique to Batten disease but may occur in muscle of SLE patients treated with chloroquine.