A group of disorders marked by inflammation or pain in the connective tissue structures of the body. These structures include bone, cartilage, and fat.

A term previously used to describe chronic diseases of the connective tissue (e.g., rheumatoid arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus, and systemic sclerosis), but now is thought to be more appropriate for diseases associated with defects in collagen, which is a component of the connective tissue.

(rheumatic disease) An umbrella term used to encompass disorders characterized by autoimmunity, autoinflammatory processes, joint or connective tissue inflammation or degeneration.

Historically, a heterogeneous group of acute and chronic diseases, including rheumatoid arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus, progressive systemic sclerosis, dermatomyositis, etc. This classification was based on the notion that "collagen" was equivalent to "connective tissue", but with the present recognition of the different types of collagen and the aggregates derived from them as distinct entities, the term "collagen diseases" now pertains exclusively to those inherited conditions in which the primary defect is at the gene level and affects collagen biosynthesis, post-translational modification, or extracellular processing directly. (From Cecil Textbook of Medicine, 19th ed, p1494)

(collagen disorder) Pertains to those conditions in which the primary defect is at the gene level and affects collagen biosynthesis, post-translational modification, or extracellular processing directly.

(rheumatologic disorder) Inflammatory and degenerative diseases of connective tissue structures, such as arthritis.