Factor VIIa - antithrombin complexes are increased in asthma: relation to the exacerbation-prone asthma phenotype.

Background: Asthma is associated with a prothrombotic state. Plasma factor VIIa-antithrombin complex concentrations (FVIIa-AT) indirectly reflect the interaction of tissue factor (TF) with FVII. Since TF is a key initiator of coagulation in vivo, we hypothesized that FVIIa-AT are higher in asthma.

Hyper eosinophilic diseases - diagnosis and therapeutic approach - practical position of the Polish working group.

Hypereosinophilic diseases represent a heterogeneous group that poses a significant medical challenge. An increased number of eosinophils in the blood can be a dominant symptom of hematologic diseases, such as myeloid hematopoietic cancers or lymphomas. However, it is more commonly associated with other health conditions, such as allergies, infections, and systemic inflammatory diseases.

Current Practice and Perspectives on Subcutaneous Immunoglobulin Replacement Therapy in Patients with Primary Antibody Deficiency Among Specialized Nurses in Poland.

Background/objectives: Inborn errors of immunity (IEI) encompass various congenital disorders, resulting in immunity defects and recurrent infections. Home-based subcutaneous immunoglobulin replacement therapy (scIgRT) is the best treatment option for those with primary antibody deficiency (PAD). However, the lack of standardized procedures in patient training remains a challenge.

Malignancy in systemic lupus erythematosus: relation to disease characteristics in 92 patients - a single center retrospective study.

Objective: Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a chronic autoimmune disease with a variable clinical manifestation, potentially leading to death. Importantly, patients with SLE have an increased risk of neoplastic disorders. Thus, this study aimed to comprehensively evaluate the clinical and laboratory characteristics of patients with SLE and with or without malignancy.

Serum IL-17 and TNFα as prognostic biomarkers in systemic sclerosis patients: a prospective study.

Recent reports have demonstrated that endothelial injury is critical in the pathogenesis of systemic sclerosis (SSc) and is associated with increased levels of circulating inflammatory biomarkers. This study aims to analyze the serum concentrations of selected cytokines and evaluate their relationship with SSc clinics and the long-term course of the disease. This study included 43 SSc patients and 24 matched healthy controls.

Association between clinical features and course of systemic sclerosis and serum interleukin-8, vascular endothelial growth factor, basic fibroblast growth factor, and interferon alpha.

Background: Certain mediators, such as soluble growth factors and cytokines, among others, are implicated in the immunopathogenesis of systemic sclerosis (SSc).

Objectives: This study aimed to examine the association between serum levels of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), interleukin-8 (IL-8), interferon alpha (IFN-α), and basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) and the clinical presentation and course of SSc.

Material And Methods: This longitudinal, observational study included 43 patients with SSc and 24 healthy subjects.

High prevalence of thrombophilic risk factors in patients with central retinal artery occlusion.

Introduction: Central retinal artery occlusion (CRAO) is a common cause of blindness and visual morbidity. In the majority of cases, it is related to thrombotic embolism. Nevertheless, the role of inherited or acquired thrombophilic risk factors in CRAO pathogenesis has not been comprehensively studied.

Increased oxidative stress response in circulating blood of systemic sclerosis patients - relation to disease characteristics and inflammatory blood biomarkers.

Background: Systemic sclerosis (SSc) is a rare connective tissue disorder of unknown etiology characterized by organ fibrosis and microcirculation dysfunction. Emerging evidence suggests that SSc is related to increased oxidative stress, which contributes to further tissue and vascular damage.

Methods: Oxidative stress response in the peripheral blood was assessed in patients with SSc (n = 55) and well-matched controls (n = 44) using real-time monitoring of protein hydroperoxide (HP) formation by the coumarin boronic acid (CBA) assay.

Endobronchial Ultrasound is Useful in the Assessment of Bronchial Wall Changes Related to Bronchial Thermoplasty.

Background: Bronchial thermoplasty (BT) is an interventional endoscopic treatment for severe asthma leading to the clinical improvement, but morphologic changes of bronchial wall related to the procedure and predictors of a favorable response to BT remain uncertain. The aim of the study was to validate an endobronchial ultrasound (EBUS) in assessing the effectiveness of BT treatment.

Methods: Patients with severe asthma who met the clinical criteria for BT were included.

Supporting the Diagnosis of Fabry Disease Using a Natural Language Processing-Based Approach.

In clinical practice, the consideration of non-specific symptoms of rare diseases in order to make a correct and timely diagnosis is often challenging. To support physicians, we developed a decision-support scoring system on the basis of retrospective research. Based on the literature and expert knowledge, we identified clinical features typical for Fabry disease (FD).

The emerging role of extracellular vesicles as communicators between adipose tissue and pathologic lungs with a special focus on asthma.

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) gain increasing attention due to their (patho-)physiological role in intercellular signaling, specifically in the communication between distant organs. Recent studies highlight a connection between the adipose tissue (AT) and the lung via (immuno-)modulatory EVs in disorders such as obesity-associated asthma and lung cancer-associated cachexia. Although lung cancer-derived EVs induce lipolysis and myotube atrophy in vivo, pathogenic effects were also reported in the opposite direction with the involvement of AT-derived EVs in cancer-promoting responses and potentially in asthma development.

Co-Expression Analysis of Airway Epithelial Transcriptome in Asthma Patients with Eosinophilic vs. Non-Eosinophilic Airway Infiltration.

Asthma heterogeneity complicates the search for targeted treatment against airway inflammation and remodeling. We sought to investigate relations between eosinophilic inflammation, a phenotypic feature frequent in severe asthma, bronchial epithelial transcriptome, and functional and structural measures of airway remodeling. We compared epithelial gene expression, spirometry, airway cross-sectional geometry (computed tomography), reticular basement membrane thickness (histology), and blood and bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) cytokines of = 40 moderate to severe eosinophilic (EA) and non-eosinophilic asthma (NEA) patients distinguished by BAL eosinophilia.

Editorial to the Special Issue "Pathogenesis and Novel Therapeutics in Asthma".

In recent years, substantial progress has been made in our understanding of asthma pathomechanisms, especially phenotyping [...

Prothrombotic state, endothelial injury, and echocardiographic changes in non-active sarcoidosis patients.

Sarcoidosis is a multisystem inflammatory granulomatous disease of unknown cause that most commonly affects lungs and lymph nodes, with frequent yet asymptomatic cardiac involvement. The epidemiologically associated cardiovascular risk suggests an underlying prothrombotic state and endothelial dysfunction, currently understudied in the available literature. Therefore, we aimed to investigate prothrombotic plasma properties together with selected echocardiographic and laboratory biomarkers of cardiovascular injury in that disease.

Early Effects of Nivolumab and Ipilimumab Combined Immunotherapy in the Treatment of Metastatic Melanoma in Poland: A Multicenter Experience.

Nivolumab and ipilimumab combination became the first-line standard in advanced melanoma. We assessed its efficacy in a real-life study in Poland. In a one-year follow-up, we evaluated the medical records of 50 melanoma patients treated with that modality in five oncology centers.