Search results for "rheumatology"
showing 10 items of 851 documents
Fibromyalgia severity according to age categories: results of a cross-sectional study from a large national database
2021
ObjectiveThe role of age in influencing the severity of fibromyalgia (FM) is still controversial. The aim of this study is to define the contribution of age in the severity of FM from data from a large national database.MethodsThis cross-sectional study included adult patients with FM diagnosed according to the 2010/2011 American College of Rheumatology criteria. Disease severity was assessed with the revised Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire (FIQR) and the modified Fibromyalgia Assessment Status (FAS 2019mod). Patients were grouped into five age categories (between 18-40 years, between 41- 50 years, between 51-60 years, between 61-70 years, and =71 years). Differences in disease severity b…
NF-κB protects Behçet's disease T cells against CD95-induced apoptosis up-regulating antiapoptotic proteins
2005
Objective To determine whether prolongation of the inflammatory reaction in patients with Behcet's disease (BD) is related to apoptosis resistance and is associated with the up-regulation of antiapoptotic factors. Methods The percentage of cell death was evaluated by flow cytometry in peripheral blood mononuclear cells from 35 patients with BD and 30 healthy volunteers. The expression levels of antiapoptotic factors and NF-κB regulatory proteins were measured using Western blotting and immunohistochemical analyses. To down-regulate NF-κB nuclear translocation, BD T lymphocytes were exposed in vitro to thalidomide and subjected to transfection with NF-κB small interfering RNA. Results Althou…
Are laboratory tests useful for monitoring the activity of lupus nephritis? A 6-year prospective study in a cohort of 228 patients with lupus nephrit…
2008
Objectives:To evaluate the role of immunological tests for monitoring lupus nephritis (LN) activity.Methods:C3, C4, anti-dsDNA and anti-C1q antibodies were prospectively performed over 6 years in 228 patients with LN.Results:In membranous LN only anti-C1q antibodies differentiated proteinuric flares from quiescent disease (p = 0.02). However, in this group 46% of flares occurred with a normal value of anti-C1q antibodies versus 20% in proliferative LN (p = 0.02). In patients with antiphospholipid antibodies (APL), 33% of flares occurred with normal levels of anti-C1q antibodies versus 14.5% in patients that were APL-negative (p = 0.02). In proliferative LN, anti-C1q antibodies showed a slig…
Brief Report: Inhibition of interleukin-6 function corrects Th17/Treg cell imbalance in patients with rheumatoid arthritis
2012
OBJECTIVE: From an immunologic standpoint, the mechanisms by which treatment with tocilizumab (TCZ), a humanized anti-interleukin-6 (anti-IL-6) receptor antibody, results in improvement in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients are still not fully understood. In vitro studies and studies in mouse models have demonstrated the critical role of IL-6 in Th17 cell differentiation. Th17 lymphocytes have been shown to be strongly involved in RA pathogenesis, and the purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of IL-6 blockade on the balance between Th17 cells and Treg cells in patients with active RA. METHODS: Patients with active RA for whom TCZ had been prescribed by a rheumatologist were en…
Allelic variants of IL1R1gene associate with severe hand osteoarthritis
2010
Background In search for genes predisposing to osteoarthritis (OA), several genome wide scans have provided evidence for linkage on 2q. In this study we targeted a 470 kb region on 2q11.2 presenting the locus with most evidence for linkage to severe OA of distal interphalangeal joints (DIP) in our genome wide scan families. Methods We genotyped 32 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in this 470 kb region comprising six genes belonging to the interleukin 1 superfamily and monitored for association with individual SNPs and SNP haplotypes among severe familial hand OA cases (material extended from our previous linkage study; n = 134), unrelated end-stage bilateral primary knee OA cases (n =…
Epidemiology and risk factors in osteoarthritis: literature review data from “OASIS” study
2004
Ostheoarthritis (OA) is a social disease characterized by pain, inflammation and stiffness due to an involvement of articular cartilage, soft tissues and bone.OA is the most common rheumatic disease, every age can be affected but prevalence increases dramatically with age with a greater incidence in subjects between 40 and 50 years of age. Hip OA has an important correlation with weight, genetic factors, sex, previous traumas, occupational factors and age. People older than 35 have a prevalence of Hip OA of 10,8% that becomes 35,4% in people older than 85. Knee OA has a great correlation with weight ,life style and physical activity. An Italian study has demonstrated that the prevalence of …
Exploring the relationship between demographic and disease-related variables and perceived effect of health status on sexual activity in patients wit…
2017
To explore the relationship between demographic and disease-related variables and the perceived effect of health status on sexual activity in patients with axial spondyloarthritis (ax-SpA).The study assessed 379 ax-SpA patients consecutively recruited from two rheumatology outpatient clinics. Data collection included information on demographics, markers and measures of ax-SpA disease, treatment, comorbidity, and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) using the Short Form-36. The perceived effect of health status on sexual activity was assessed using question 15 in the HRQoL instrument 15D.The mean age of the patients was 45.6 years, 66.5% were men, 87.3% were human leucocyte antigen-B27 pos…
Pharmacological stress, rest perfusion and delayed enhancement cardiac magnetic resonance identifies very early cardiac involvement in systemic scler…
2017
Objective To evaluate occult cardiac involvement in asymptomatic systemic sclerosis (SSc) patients by pharmacological stress, rest perfusion and delayed enhancement cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR), for a very early identification of patients at higher risk of cardiac-related mortality. Methods Sixteen consecutive patients with definite SSc, fulfilling the American College of Rheumatology/European League Against Rheumatism 2013 classification criteria in less than 1 year from the onset of Raynaud's phenomenon, underwent pharmacological stress, rest perfusion and delayed enhancement CMR. At enrollment, no patient showed signs and/or symptoms suggestive for cardiac involvement. No patient sho…
One year study of efficacy and safety of infliximab in the treatment of patients with ocular and neurological Behçet's disease refractory to standard…
2011
Abstract The aim of the study was to assess the long-term efficacy and safety of Infliximab therapy in the treatment of patients with Behçet’s disease refractory to standard immunosuppressive agents. Twenty-one patients that did not respond to corticosteroids and to at least one immunosuppressant (cyclosporin, methotrexate, azathioprine, cyclophosphamide) for the presence of ocular and/or CNS involvement were enrolled. Eighteen patients completed the study up to 54 weeks. Stable doses of prednisone (<10 mg/day) were permitted, immunosuppressants were discontinued at least 4 weeks prior baseline visit. The patients received three infusions of 5 mg/kg Infliximab (at weeks 0, 2 and 6) and then…
Value of whole-body magnetic resonance imaging for screening multifocal osteonecrosis in patients with polymyositis/dermatomyositis
2017
To assess the value of coronal short-tau inversion recovery whole-body MRI (STIR-WBMRI) for screening osteonecrosis in patients with polymyositis (PM)/dermatomyositis (DM).The imaging and medical records of 129 patients with PM/DM who met the Bohan and Peter diagnostic criteria were retrospectively analyzed. STIR-WBMRI was performed in all patients. 18 patients had follow-up STIR-WBMRI. 12 patients underwent regional knee and/or hip MRI while 25 patients underwent radiography of the lower extremities.STIR-WBMRI detected osteonecrosis in 15 (11.6%) patients. 38 joints were affected (mean, 2.5 per patient; range, 1-5 joints). Of the 38 joints affected by osteonecrosis, 33 had no clinical symp…