Our data support the fact that homozygosity for the SAA1.3 allele is a univariate predictor of survival in addition to a risk factor for the association of AA amyloidosis adversely influencing the outcome in Japanese RA patients. Renal involvement is a pivotal clinical manifestation in the development of AA amyloidosis, as is likely to be cardiac involvement in AA amyloidosis secondary to RA.
The benefit of biological therapies in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) treatment is well known, but their role in amyloid A (AA) amyloidosis secondary to RA is unclear. The aim of this study was to clarify the clinical benefit of etanercept in RA patients with AA amyloidosis. We treated 14 RA patients who had serum amyloid A protein (SAA) 1.3 allele, with biopsy-confirmed AA amyloidosis with etanercept and investigated the efficacy of etanercept treatment, focusing on renal function retrospectively. The AA amyloidosis improved and stabilized after 89.1 ± 27.2 weeks. Proteinuria decreased from 2.24 ± 0.81 to 0.57 ± 0.41 g/day (P < 0.01) and SAA fell from 250 ± 129 to 26 ± 15 μg/ml (P < 0.01), respectively. Diarrhea secondary to gastrointestinal AA amyloidosis was less. Overall, the serum creatinine levels did not benefit with treatment, but in those with a creatinine values <2.0 mg/dl the creatinine level continued to fall (P = 0.021). Serum albumin increased following 96 weeks of etanercept treatment (P = 0.003). Etanercept treatment led to clinical improvement in proteinuria and serum albumin levels accompanied by a fall in SAA levels.
Secondary amyloid A (AA) amyloidosis is an uncommon yet important complication of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). It is one of the most relentless of the extra-articular features of RA, and suitable treatments have not yet been found. We studied the efficacy of cyclophosphamide (CYC) combined with prednisolone (PSL) in amyloidotic patients who had serum amyloid A (SAA) 1.3 genotype, which is a risk factor for secondary amyloidosis in Japanese RA patients. Fifteen RA patients who were SAA1.3 homo- and heterozygotes with biopsy-confirmed AA amyloidosis were treated with a combination of CYC and PSL. Laboratory variables of C-reactive protein (CRP), rheumatoid factor (RF), erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), serum albumin (Alb), serum creatinine (Cre) and Lansbury's index were carried out by statistical analysis of changes between before and during the medication. According to the Mann-Whitney rank test, CRP, RF, ESR, Alb and Cre levels improved significantly with the combination treatment (p<0.05). Also, paired t-tests showed significance in Lansbury's index between before and during the medication (p=0.007). CYC combined with PSL ameliorated not only laboratory markers but also clinical rheumatoid activity in patients with amyloidosis secondary to RA, whose genotypes were SAA1.3 homo- and heterozygous. CRP, ESR, RF, Alb and Cre will be surrogate markers of therapeutic efficacy. The combination of CYC and PSL appears to be beneficial for Japanese RA patients who are SAA1.3 homo- and heterozygous carriers, associated with secondary AA amyloidosis.
We describe an unusual case of a 38-year-old woman with a localised form of polyarteritis nodosa (PAN) manifested by acute onset of severe calf pain. Magnetic resonance imaging of the lower legs showed abnormal signal intensity of the outer calves muscle. Biopsies of the gastrocnemius revealed an acute necrotising arteritis with marked non-specific fasciitis. The diseased muscle improved with corticosteroid administration alone. The fascial involvement likely contributed to the severity of the clinical features of PAN, which may be related to a previous hepatitis B virus infection.
Calcinosis, Raynaud's phenomenon, oesophageal dysmotility, sclerodactyly, telangiectasia (CREST) syndrome, a limited form of systemic sclerosis, is sometimes complicated by primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC). A 52- and 61-year-old Japanese woman with PBC-CREST overlap syndrome accompanied by Sjögren's syndrome, and Hashimoto's thyroiditis, and Graves' disease, respectively, are reported. They had suffered from Raynaud's phenomena, sclerodactyly, morning stiffness, arthralgia, and sicca symptoms during these several years. They exhibited an increased level of alkaline phosphatase, gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase, positive antibodies against mitochondria and centromere, and hyperglobulinemia without any cholestatic symptoms. Histological findings from liver biopsy specimens were consistent with those of PBC. Clinically, they were diagnosed as both asymptomatic PBC and incomplete CREST syndrome. Their human leukocyte antigen typing showed both DR4 and DR8 positive. The association of the four autoimmune conditions is clinically and etiologically important. Although a combination of these diseases is rare, it is of importance to keep in mind that various autoimmune diseases could occur simultaneously. Of critical importance is that an active diagnostic attitude towards them is admirable, and that early diagnosis and therapy are needed.
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