Celiac disease in North Italian patients with autoimmune thyroid diseases.

Background: Patients with autoimmune thyroid diseases (AITDs) are prone to develop other autoimmune manifestations and to display autoimmune polyendocrine syndromes. An increased prevalence of celiac disease (CD) was demonstrated in adult European and Italian patients with AITDs; conversely, an increased prevalence of AITDs was demonstrated in patients with CD. An IgA deficiency is the most frequent immunodeficiency in humans and, in general, high frequency of this disorder was demonstrated in those with autoimmune diseases.

Estimated risk for developing autoimmune Addison's disease in patients with adrenal cortex autoantibodies.

Context: Patients with adrenal cortex autoantibodies (ACA) without overt autoimmune Addison's disease (AAD) are at risk of adrenal failure.

Design: To assess the contribution of different clinical, immunological, genetic, and functional factors in the progression to AAD, we followed up 100 ACA-positive and 63 ACA-negative patients without AAD for a maximum of 21 yr (mean 6.0 yr, median 4.

Celiac disease in North Italian patients with autoimmune Addison's disease.

Objective: Patients with autoimmune Addison's disease (AAD) are prone to develop other autoimmune manifestations. An increased prevalence of celiac disease (CD) has recently been demonstrated in Northern European patients with AAD. IgA deficiency is the most frequent type of immunodeficiency among humans and is present in about one in every 600 individuals in the population.

Helicobacter pylori infection and gastric autoimmune diseases: is there a link?

Background: Helicobacter pylori is thought to be involved in atrophic body gastritis. We explored the prevalence of H. pylori infection in asymptomatic subjects with gastric parietal cell antibodies, as well as in patients with pernicious anemia, to evaluate a possible role of H.