Common findings include oral ulcers that come and go. In some cases, these ulcers are painless and go unnoticed. In the oral cavity, the patients may experience recurrent aphthous stomatitis, geographic tongue and migratory stomatitis in higher prevalence than the general population. Some patients experience serious gastrointestinal problems similar to those of Crohns disease. About 10 percent of people with reactive arthritis, especially those with a prolonged course of the disease, will develop cardiac manifestations, including aortic regurgitation and pericarditis. Reactive arthritis has been described as a precursor of other joint conditions, including ankylosing spondylitis. Causes
Reactive arthritis is associated with the HLA-B27 gene on chromosome 6 and by the presence of enthesitis as the basic pathologic lesion and is triggered by a preceding infection. The most common triggering infection in the US is a genital infection with Chlamydia trachomatis. Other bacteria known to cause reactive arthritis which are more common worldwide are Ureaplasma urealyticum, Salmonella spp., Shigella spp., Yersinia spp., and Campylobacter spp. A bout of food poisoning or a gastrointestinal infection may also precede the disease (the last four genera of bacteria mentioned above are enteric bacteria). Shigella is the most common organism causing reactive arthritis following diarrhea. Chlamydia trachomatis is the most common cause of reactive arthritis following urethritis. Ureaplasma and mycoplasma are rare causes. There is some circumstantial evidence for other organisms causing the disease, but the details are unclear.Reactive arthritis usually manifests about 1–3 weeks after a known infection. The mechanism of interaction between the infecting organism and the host is unknown.
Furthermore, he was not the first physician to make associations between the arthritis and other symptoms—the names arthritis urethritica, venereal arthritis and polyarteritis enterica had previously been applied—and the full triad was described by another physician in the 19th century. Notable cases
It has been postulated that Italian-born explorer Christopher Columbus had reactive arthritis, dying from a heart attack caused by the condition. Pat Buchanan, American conservative political commentator, author, syndicated columnist, politician and broadcaster
P. J. Gallagher
Ian Murray, Scottish football player
Mark St. John, one-time guitarist for Kiss
Kirk Brandon, lead singer for Spear of Destiny
Daniel Johns, Australian musician, lead singer for Silverchair
Steve Walters, football player and survivor of sexual abuse by football trainer Barry Bennell

See also
List of medical eponyms with Nazi associations

References
External links

eMedicine
Questions and Answers about Reactive Arthritis - US National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases