Recommendations for the diagnosis and treatment of anti-neutrophil cytoplasmic autoantibody associated vasculitis.

Anti-neutrophil cytoplasmic autoantibody (ANCA)-associated vasculitis is characterised by small vessel necrotising inflammatory vasculitis. Prior to immunosupressant therapy availability it usually led to a fatal outcome. Current treatment has changed ANCA-associated vasculitis into a condition with a significant response rate, although with a not negligible relapse occurrence and cumulative organ lesions, mostly due to drug-related toxicities.

Anti-NOR90 antibodies and their clinical significance: a multicenter experience in southern Spain.

Introduction: Anti-NOR90 antibodies were initially described in patients with autoimmune diseases based on staining of a nucleolar region known as the nucleolar organizer region (NOR). This study aims to explore the clinical aspects of anti-NOR90 antibodies in patients with systemic autoimmune diseases.

Methods: Observational study of patients with positive anti-NOR90 antibodies using the EUROLINE Systemic Sclerosis profile (IgG) kit (Euroimmun, Germany).

Rituximab-induced cystoid macular edema in a patient with systemic lupus erythematosus: A case report and literature review.

Cystoid macular edema (CME) is considered a rare adverse effect of rituximab use, with only a limited number of cases published in the literature. Although its etiopathogenesis is still unknown, its mechanism seems to be related to a transient elevation of cytokines after rituximab infusion resulting in an increased permeability of retinal vessels. We report the first case of rituximab-induced CME in a patient with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), where rituximab was used to treat hematological complications.

Does stress response axis activation differ between patients with autoimmune disease and healthy people?

Many studies have shown that patients with autoimmune disease present a hypoactive hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, but the results are controversial. Our objective was to study differences in stress response axis activity between patients with autoimmune disease and healthy people. The study sample consisted of 97 women divided into four groups: 37 healthy women (HW), 21 with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), 21 with Sjögren's syndrome (SS), and 18 with systemic sclerosis (SSc).