The incidence of HLA-B27 antigen in postmyocardial infarction frozen shoulder syndrome

Frozen shoulder (FS) is one of the arthropathies of unknown etiology reported to be associated with an increased frequency of HLA-B27. The diagnosis is based on clinical and radiological criteria. In about 20% of the cases FS appears 3-24 weeks after a myocardial infarction (MI). 58 patients with FS, of whom 21 had a previous MI, were studied. Lymphocytes were tested by the NIH two-stage microlymphocytotoxicity technique. Comparison of HLA antigen frequency with normal controls did not yield any significant differences. We could not confirm Bulgen's report that HLA-B27 is increased in this disease.