Reactive arthritis
Sterile asymmetric lower-limb arthritis 1 to 4 weeks after chlamydia or enteric infection, the extra-articular clues, excluding septic and gonococcal arthritis, and when antibiotics do and don't help.
Tier 1Condition
Written with AI assistance and fact-checked against the sources below. For exam study, not clinical decisions. How notes are made
At a glance
- A sterile inflammatory arthritis 1 to 4 weeks after a genitourinary or gut infection. One of the spondyloarthritis family.
- Asymmetric oligoarthritis of the lower limbs, with enthesitis, dactylitis and sometimes eye, skin or genital features.
- The classic triad of arthritis, urethritis and conjunctivitis is present in under a third. The eponym "Reiter syndrome" has been dropped.
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Sources
- Therapeutic Guidelines: Rheumatology (spondyloarthritis, reactive arthritis) and Antibiotic (genital chlamydia, enteric infections)AU/NZTherapeutic Guidelines Limited (eTG complete), current online version, accessed November 2026
- Australian STI Management Guidelines for Use in Primary Care (chlamydia, urethritis)AU/NZAustralasian Society for HIV, Viral Hepatitis and Sexual Health Medicine (ASHM), current online version, accessed November 2026
- National Notifiable Diseases Surveillance System (NNDSS)AU/NZAustralian Centre for Disease Control, current, accessed November 2026
- Schmitt SK. Reactive arthritis. Infect Dis Clin North Am 2017;31:265-77Infectious Disease Clinics of North America, 2017
- Carter JD et al. Combination antibiotics as a treatment for chronic Chlamydia-induced reactive arthritis: a double-blind, placebo-controlled, prospective trial. Arthritis Rheum 2010;62:1298-307Arthritis and Rheumatism, 2010
- Last updated
- 14 November 2026
What changed
- 14 November 2026 Personal emails, About story and Australian-style copy