The clinical spectrum of MAS is comparable across patients seen in different geographic settings or by diverse pediatric subspecialists. There was a disparity in the therapeutic choices among physicians that underscores the need to establish uniform therapeutic protocols.
Since the incidence of benign hypermobility syndrome is significantly high in otherwise healthy children, paediatricians should consider this benign entity when they evaluate musculoskeletal complaints in childhood.
Sarcoidosis in childhood is recognized as a systemic disease affecting various organs and having diverse clinical course depending on the age of onset.
Objective
To evaluate the long‐term efficacy and safety of canakinumab and explore prediction of response in patients with systemic juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) with or without fever at treatment initiation.
Methods
At enrollment, patients with active systemic JIA (ages 2 to <20 years) started open‐label canakinumab (4 mg/kg every 4 weeks subcutaneously). Efficacy measures included the adapted American College of Rheumatology (ACR) Pediatric 50/70/90 criteria, the Juvenile Arthritis Disease Activity Score (JADAS), and clinically inactive disease and clinical remission on medication, evaluated by either the JADAS or ACR criteria.
Results
Of the 123 patients (70 with fever and 52 without fever [fever status was not reported for 1 patient]), 84 (68.3%) completed the study (median duration 1.8 years). Comparable efficacy (adapted ACR Pediatric 50/70/90/100) was observed by day 15 in both subgroups (60.0%/48.6%/37.1%/24.3% in those with fever and 67.3%/48.1%/34.6%/19.2% in those without fever), and further increased thereafter. By month 6, clinical remission according to the JADAS or the ACR criteria was achieved in 17 (24.3%) and 26 (37.1%), respectively, of patients with fever and 9 (17.3%) and 12 (23.1%), respectively, of patients without fever. Median time to onset of clinical remission according to the JADAS or ACR criteria was 57 and 30 days, respectively, in those with fever, and 58 and 142 days, respectively, in those without fever. An adapted ACR Pediatric 50 response by day 15 was the strongest predictor of achieving clinical remission according to the JADAS (odds ratio [OR] 13 [95% confidence interval (95% CI) 4, 42]; P < 0.0001) or glucocorticoid discontinuation (OR 19 [95% CI 3, 114]; P = 0.002). Of the 71 of 123 patients (57.7%) who received glucocorticoids at study entry, 27 (38.0%) discontinued glucocorticoids and 21 (29.6%) reached a dose of <0.2 mg/kg/day, with no difference between those with and those without fever; 13 patients (10.6%) tolerated a sustained canakinumab dose reduction to 2 mg/kg every 4 weeks. No new safety findings were observed.
Conclusion
Canakinumab provided rapid and sustained improvement of active systemic JIA irrespective of the presence of fever at treatment initiation.
Objective
COVID‐19–associated pediatric vasculitis, other than Kawasaki disease (KD)–like vasculitis in multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS‐C), is very rare. This study sought to analyze the characteristics, treatment, and outcomes in patients with COVID‐19–associated pediatric vasculitis (excluding KD‐like vasculitis in MIS‐C).
Methods
The inclusion criteria were as follows: 1) age <18 years at vasculitis onset; 2) evidence of vasculitis; 3) evidence of SARS–CoV‐2 exposure; and 4) ≤3 months between SARS–CoV‐2 exposure and vasculitis onset. Patients with MIS‐C were excluded. The features of the subset of patients in our cohort who had COVID‐19–associated pediatric IgA vasculitis/Henoch Schönlein purpura (IgAV/HSP) were compared against a pre‐pandemic cohort of pediatric IgAV/HSP patients.
Results
Forty‐one patients (median age 8.3 years; male to female ratio 1.3) were included from 14 centers and 6 countries. The most frequent vasculitis subtype was IgAV/HSP (n = 30). The median duration between SARS–CoV‐2 exposure and vasculitis onset was 13 days. Involvement of the skin (92.7%) and of the gastrointestinal system (61%) were the most common manifestations of vasculitis. Most patients (68.3%) received glucocorticoids, and 14.6% also received additional immunosuppressive drugs. Remission was achieved in all patients. All of the patients with IgAV/HSP in our cohort had skin manifestations, while 18 (60%) had gastrointestinal involvement and 13 (43.3%) had renal involvement. When we compared the features of this subset of 30 patients to those of a pre‐pandemic pediatric IgAV/HSP cohort (n = 159), the clinical characteristics of fever and renal involvement were more common in our COVID‐19–associated pediatric IgAV/HSP cohort (fever, 30% versus 5%, respectively [
P
< 0.001]; renal involvement, 43.3% versus 17.6%, respectively [
P
= 0.002]). Recovery without treatment and complete recovery were each less frequent among our COVID‐19‐associated pediatric IgAV/HSP patients compared to the pre‐pandemic pediatric IgAV/HSP cohort (recovery without treatment, 10% versus 39%, respectively [
P
= 0.002]; complete recovery, 86.7% versus 99.4%, respectively [
P
= 0.002]).
Conclusion
This is the largest cohort of children with COVID‐19–associated vasculitis (excluding MIS‐C) studied to date. Our findings suggest that children with COVID‐19–associated IgAV/HSP experience a more severe disease course compared to pediatric IgAV/HSP patients before the pandemic.
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