Current causes of death in systemic lupus erythematosus in Europe, 2000--2004: relation to disease activity and damage accrual.

Current therapeutic and diagnostic resources have turned systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) into a chronic disease by reducing mortality rates. The exact contribution of disease activity and disease related damage to mortality is not well studied. The aim of this study was to describe the current causes of death (COD) in a multinational European cohort of patients with SLE in relation to quantified measures of disease activity and damage.

Fibronectin, Cryoglobulinemia and Immune Complexes in Sjogren's Syndrome Patients.

The problem of proper diagnosis, patient's status and disease progression is very actual for autoimmune diseases. Still the diagnosis of Sjogren's syndrome is more state of art than of science. Our preliminary investigations showed that serum fibronectin of elevated molecular weight may be probably considered as one of the diagnostic criteria in Sjogren's syndrome patients.

Serum soluble markers of immune activation and disease activity in systemic lupus erythematosus.

We investigated a possible association between markers of immune activation and disease activity in 52 patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Serum concentrations of neopterin, beta-2-microglobulin, 55 kD-type soluble tumor necrosis factor receptor, soluble interleukin-2 receptor and soluble CD8 were compared to the Index of European Consensus Lupus Activity Measurement (ECLAM). All markers of immune activation, except sCD8, significantly correlated with ECLAM.

Serum-soluble receptors for tumor necrosis factor-alpha and interleukin-2, and neopterin in acute rheumatic fever.

Immune activation may play an important role in the pathogenesis of acute rheumatic fever (ARF). The objective of the present study was to investigate serum concentrations of various markers of immune activation in ARF patients. Sera of 32 patients with ARF were investigated, 20 of them in follow-up.

Can observational studies replace or complement experiment?

The therapeutic effects of interventions in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) are frequently modest. In the assessment of treatments effects, variability due to a variety of sources causes problems that are best controlled by randomized clinical trials. Currently most trials give only a short term picture of RA, a chronic disease whose outcome is multidimensional.