Publications by authors named "Motohiko Aizu"

Objectives: We aimed to evaluate the association between the change in serum IL-6 during the clinical course of tocilizumab (TCZ) therapy and rheumatoid arthritis (RA) disease activity or occurrence of adverse events.

Methods: General laboratory data including serum IL-6 levels and physical findings were obtained every 4 weeks, and, in addition, at the time when any adverse events occurred.

Results: The proportion achieving Clinical Disease Activity Index (CDAI) remission at 52 weeks was significantly lower in 20 patients with serum IL-6 ≥ 30 pg/ml at 12 weeks than 24 patients with serum IL-6 < 30 pg/ml.

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We report a case of Henoch- Schönlein purpura nephritis (HSPN) associated with tubulointerstitial nephritis (TIN) and chronic sclerosing sialoadenitis. The patient is a 75-year-old Japanese woman who had bilateral submandibular gland swelling, palpable purpura on the lower legs, and decreased renal function with hematoproteinuria and marked hypocomplementemia, but no skin lesion suggestive of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), and did not fulfill the classification criteria for SLE. Her serum IgG4 level was high and immunostaining of renal biopsies revealed marked infiltration by IgG4-positive plasma cells in the interstitium, confirming the diagnosis of IgG4- related disease.

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We report a case with pulmonary veno-occlusive disease (PVOD) associated with systemic sclerosis which exhibits strong resistance to pulmonary vasodilator. A 55-year-old female with severe pulmonary hypertension was admitted to our hospital to be introduced to epoprostenol infusion therapy. She was diagnosed as having pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) associated with systemic sclerosis at the age of 51.

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