Publications by authors named "Carla Gaggiano"
Article Synopsis
- The study evaluates the safety and effectiveness of switching from the original rituximab (RTX-O) to its biosimilars (RTX-B) in patients with autoimmune rheumatic diseases (ARDs), with a focus on long-term drug retention and safety.
- It included 181 patients who switched to either GP2013 or CT-P10, finding that the drug retention rates were high over 36 months, particularly for GP2013.
- The transition to CT-P10 showed a higher risk of discontinuation, but overall, the switch to RTX-B was deemed safe with a low incidence of adverse events.
Article Synopsis
- The study evaluated the effectiveness and retention rate of secukinumab (SCK) in patients with axial spondyloarthritis (ax-SpA) using data from five Italian centers.
- A total of 71 patients were analyzed, showing significant improvements in disease activity over 24 months, with BASDAI scores decreasing from 6.2 to 3.5 and ASDAS-CRP from 2.9 to 1.7.
- Though 72% of patients remained on SCK after two years, those with fibromyalgia had a higher dropout rate, indicating that coexisting conditions may affect treatment adherence.
Article Synopsis
- The study aimed to explore gender differences in the phenotypical expression of Behçet's disease (BD) using data from the International AIDA Network Registry, focusing on damage index, disease manifestations, and cardiovascular risk.
- A total of 1024 patients (567 males and 457 females) were examined, revealing that males had a significantly higher overall damage index and more frequent occurrences of uveitis and vascular involvement, while females showed higher instances of arthralgia, arthritis, and CNS involvement.
- Key factors associated with major organ involvement included male gender, treatment with biologic agents, origin from endemic regions, and longer disease duration, indicating a more severe course of BD in males compared to females.
Objective: To evaluate the cardiac involvement in patients with Still's disease with a focus on myocarditis included in the multicenter AIDA (AutoInflammatory Disease Alliance) network Still's disease registry. To exploit the predictive factors for myocarditis in deriving a clinical risk patient profile for this severe manifestation.
Methods: A multicenter observational study was built up assessing consecutive patients with Still's disease characterized by the cardiac involvement among those included in the AIDA Network Still's Disease Registry.
Corrigendum: Efficacy and safety of Janus kinase inhibitors in non-infectious inflammatory ocular diseases: a prospective cohort study from the international AIDA network registries.
Front Med (Lausanne)
September 2024
Article Synopsis
- The article discusses corrections to research findings initially published.
- It emphasizes the importance of accuracy in scientific communication.
- This correction aims to ensure that readers are aware of any significant changes to the original data and conclusions.
Objectives: (1) characterizing a group of spondyloarthritis (SpA) patients with systemic auto-inflammatory symptoms (S-SpA); (2) comparing SpA features with and without auto-inflammatory symptoms; (3) comparing the auto-inflammatory features of S-SpA and Still's disease (SD).
Methods: Retrospective observational study. Clinical data of adult and pediatric patients with S-SpA, SD or SpA were collected retrospectively and analyzed.
Efficacy and safety of Janus kinase inhibitors in non-infectious inflammatory ocular diseases: a prospective cohort study from the international AIDA network registries.
Front Med (Lausanne)
August 2024
Article Synopsis
- Non-infectious inflammatory ocular diseases can be challenging to diagnose and manage, often requiring systemic immunosuppressive therapy; JAK inhibitors may offer a new treatment approach.
- A study with 12 patients showed that systemic diseases were present in 67% of cases, and various JAK inhibitors were administered, with an average treatment duration of 8.6 months.
- Results indicated complete ocular disease control in all patients after treatment, with a significant reduction in the incidence of ocular flares, confirming the efficacy and safety of JAK inhibitors for these conditions.
Article Synopsis
- The study investigates the relationship between Familial Mediterranean fever (FMF), a severe inflammatory condition, and the risk of cancer development compared to other diseases like fibromyalgia, Still's disease, and Behçet's disease.
- Results show that FMF patients have a significantly lower risk for malignancies compared to fibromyalgia patients, with a risk ratio (RR) of 0.26; however, this risk is less clear when comparing with the other conditions.
- Factors influencing cancer risk in FMF patients include age at onset and diagnosis, frequency of disease attacks, and treatment with specific biotechnological agents.
Purpose: The clinical relevance of human leukocyte antigen (HLA) subtypes such as HLA-B51 on Behçet's disease (BD)-related uveitis and non-infectious uveitis (NIU) unrelated to BD remains largely unknown.
Methods: Data were prospectively collected from the International AIDA Network Registry for BD and for NIU. We assessed differences between groups (NIU unrelated to BD and positive for HLA-B51, BD-related uveitis positive for HLA-B51 and BD-related uveitis negative for HLA-B51) in terms of long-term ocular complications, visual acuity (VA) measured by best corrected visual acuity (BCVA), anatomical pattern, occurrence of retinal vasculitis (RV) and macular edema over time.
Introduction: Vascular events account for a considerable burden of morbidity and mortality in Behçet syndrome (BS). Thrombosis occurs in 1.8-21 % pediatric BS patients, even if the real prevalence is still largely unknown.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: This study aims to characterize ocular manifestations of juvenile Behçet's disease (jBD).
Methods: This was a registry-based observational prospective study. All subjects with jBD from the Autoinflammatory Diseases Alliance (AIDA) Network BD Registry showing ocular manifestations before 18 years were enrolled.
Inhibiting Janus Kinases (JAK) is a crucial therapeutic strategy in rheumatoid arthritis (RA). However, the use of JAK inhibitors has recently raised serious safety concerns. The study aims to evaluate the safety profile of JAKi in patients with RA and identify potential risk factors (RFs) for adverse events (AEs).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: Erdheim-Chester disease (ECD) is a rare histiocytic neoplasm that affects patients, predominantly males aged 40-70 years, with very heterogeneous clinical presentation and prognosis. In 2020, Goyal et al. proposed consensus recommendations for the management of patients with ECD, remarking on the exceptional presentation of the disease in the pediatric population.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFArticle Synopsis
- Many biological drug patents have expired, leading to the development of biosimilar agents (BIOs), but their use in children raises concerns, prompting a study on their efficacy and safety for treating pediatric non-infectious uveitis (NIU).
- Data collected from pediatric patients treated with TNF inhibitors BIOs showed a significant decrease in flare-ups and ocular complications, as well as a reduction in the need for glucocorticoids during treatment.
- The study included 47 patients, demonstrating strong treatment retention rates and maintaining visual acuity throughout the therapy, while only recording a few minor adverse events.
Correction: Clinical and laboratory features associated with macrophage activation syndrome in Still's disease: data from the international AIDA Network Still's Disease Registry.
Intern Emerg Med
January 2024
Introduction: The effectiveness of canakinumab may change according to the different times it is used after Still's disease onset. This study aimed to investigate whether canakinumab (CAN) shows differences in short- and long-term therapeutic outcomes, according to its use as different lines of biologic treatment.
Methods: Patients included in this study were retrospectively enrolled from the AutoInflammatory Disease Alliance (AIDA) International Registry dedicated to Still's disease.
Article Synopsis
- - This study investigates whether pediatric-onset, adult-onset, and elderly-onset Still's disease are the same condition or different diseases by comparing demographic, clinical, and treatment response data across these age groups.
- - Out of 411 patients surveyed, most were adults (76.4%), while 15.8% were pediatric and 7.8% were elderly, with significant differences found in symptoms like skin rash and arthritis being more prevalent in children, and pleuritis in the elderly.
- - Overall, while some minor differences in symptoms and lab results were noted among the age groups, the study concludes that Still's disease has similar demographic and treatment characteristics across pediatric, adult, and elderly patients.
Article Synopsis
- The study investigates the awareness and diagnostic practices related to monogenic uveitis (mU) among uveitis specialists through an anonymous survey conducted with members of the Autoinflammatory Diseases Alliance and International Uveitis Study Group.
- Results showed that a majority of participants rated their knowledge of mU as poor, with 60.4% identifying NOD2 as the primary gene, and success rates in clinical scenarios varied significantly, especially among those in multidisciplinary teams.
- The findings highlight knowledge gaps and barriers in prescribing disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs), suggesting that the results could guide the development of better clinical guidelines and improve patient care.
Clinical and laboratory features associated with macrophage activation syndrome in Still's disease: data from the international AIDA Network Still's Disease Registry.
Intern Emerg Med
November 2023
Article Synopsis
- The study focuses on patients with Still's disease to identify clinical and laboratory signs associated with macrophage activation syndrome (MAS), a serious complication.
- Out of 414 patients examined, 39 (9.4%) developed MAS, with several significant variables like liver involvement and high ferritin levels linked to its occurrence.
- Multivariate analysis revealed that having hepatomegaly and monoarthritis were directly associated with MAS, while factors like a normal platelet count were protective against its development.
Behçet's disease (BD) is a heterogeneous multifactorial autoinflammatory disease characterized by a plethora of clinical manifestations. Cutaneous lesions are considered hallmarks of the disease. However, their evolution over time and a thorough description are scarcely reported in non-endemic regions.
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- A study assessed the clinical characteristics and treatment effectiveness of methotrexate (MTX) in patients with Still's disease, focusing on changes in disease activity and inflammatory markers.
- Among the 171 patients studied, MTX was commonly used with glucocorticoids (GCs), and many showed significant improvement, with 38.6% achieving clinical remission and reduced inflammation.
- The results suggest that MTX is effective in managing Still's disease symptoms, reducing the need for GCs, though some patients discontinued MTX due to side effects or lack of efficacy.
Introduction: This paper describes the creation and preliminary results of a patient-driven registry for the collection of patient-reported outcomes (PROs) and patient-reported experiences (PREs) in Behçet's disease (BD).
Methods: The project was coordinated by the University of Siena and the Italian patient advocacy organization SIMBA (Associazione Italiana Sindrome e Malattia di Behçet), in the context of the AIDA (AutoInflammatory Diseases Alliance) Network programme. Quality of life, fatigue, socioeconomic impact of the disease and therapeutic adherence were selected as core domains to include in the registry.
Beckground: Despite the recent advances in the field of autoinflammatory diseases, most patients with recurrent fever episodes do not have any defined diagnosis. The present study aims at describing a cohort of patients suffering from apparently unexplained recurrent fever, in whom non-radiographic axial spondylarthritis (SpA) represented the unique diagnosis identified after a complete clinical and radiologic assessment.
Materials And Methods: Patients' data were obtained from the international registry on Undifferentiated Systemic AutoInflammatory Diseases (USAIDs) developed by the AutoInflammatory Disease Alliance (AIDA) network.