Pregnancy in mixed connective tissue disease.

This article discusses fetal and maternal morbidity in women who have mixed connective tissue disease.

Threshold Amsler grid as a screening tool for asymptomatic patients on hydroxychloroquine therapy.

Background/aims: Patients taking hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) are at risk of developing classic bull's eye maculopathy. Currently, the standard Amsler grid (AG) is one of the most useful methods to identify such lesions. However, AG is a suprathreshold target and may not detect relative central scotomas.

Renal revascularization in Takayasu arteritis-induced renal artery stenosis.

Purpose: This study was undertaken to define the long-term effects of renal revascularization on blood pressure, and renal and cardiac function in patients with Takayasu arteritis-induced renal artery stenosis (TARAS).

Methods: Twenty-seven patients (25 women; mean age, 27 years) with TARAS underwent intervention. Primary, primary assisted, and secondary patency rates were determined, and the late effects on blood pressure, renal and cardiac function, and survival were analyzed.

Newly diagnosed adult-onset Still disease in pregnancy.

Background: Adult-onset Still disease is a rare febrile disorder that can present for the first time during pregnancy. It is a diagnosis of exclusion with nonspecific laboratory results. Good maternal and fetal outcomes can be expected after initial diagnosis and treatment.

Synergistic effect between IL-10 and bcl-2 genotypes in determining susceptibility to systemic lupus erythematosus.

Objective: To determine whether genes participating in programmed cell death, including bcl-2, IL-10, Fas-L, and CTLA-4, may contribute to the genetic predisposition to systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE).

Methods: First, intragenic markers for the bcl-2, IL-10, Fas-L, and CTLA-4 genes were characterized and their extent of polymorphism in normal populations was determined. The allelic distribution of these gene markers in a large Mexican American SLE cohort of 158 patients and 223 ethnically matched controls was determined using fluorescent-labeled primers and semiautomated genotyping.