Publications by authors named "Willem Jan R Fokkink"

Background And Objective: Intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIg) at a standard dosage is the treatment of choice for Guillain-Barré syndrome. The pharmacokinetics, however, is highly variable between patients, and a rapid clearance of IVIg is associated with poor recovery. We aimed to develop a model to predict the pharmacokinetics of a standard 5-day IVIg course (0.

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Article Synopsis
  • Researchers found a new way to measure a treatment called IVIg, which helps some sick patients, by using special tests that look for specific types of antibodies in their blood.
  • This method was able to detect very small amounts of IVIg in patients, especially those with a condition called Guillain-Barré syndrome.
  • The tests could show differences in how the body clears out the treatment compared to regular antibodies, which means they can help doctors understand how well IVIg is working for different patients.
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Background And Purpose: Chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyradiculoneuropathy (CIDP) is a clinical and electrophysiological heterogeneous immune-mediated polyneuropathy. Intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIg), corticosteroids, and plasma exchange are proven effective treatments for CIDP. The clinical response to IVIg is variable between patients and currently unexplained.

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Objective: The Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS) is an acute, immune-mediated disease of peripheral nerves. Plasmablasts and plasma cells play a central role in GBS by producing neurotoxic antibodies. The standard treatment for GBS is high-dose intravenous immunoglobulins (IVIg), however the working mechanism is unknown and the response to treatment is highly variable.

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Article Synopsis
  • Researchers found that anti-GD1b antibodies are present in some patients with immune-mediated neuropathies, particularly in Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS) and Miller Fisher-GBS overlap syndrome (MF-GBS).
  • Among various patient groups, IgG anti-GD1b antibodies were primarily observed in GBS (12.1%) and MF-GBS (14.3%), while IgM antibodies were found in lower frequencies.
  • Patients with GBS or MF-GBS harboring only anti-GD1b antibodies showed quicker recovery in their walking ability compared to those with other antibody combinations, indicating potential clinical significance of anti-GD1b testing for diagnosis and treatment planning.
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High peak levels of serum IgG may not be needed for maintenance treatment of chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyradiculoneuropathy (CIDP) with intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIg). More frequent dosing of IVIg leads to more stable IgG levels and higher trough levels which may be related with improved clinical efficacy. More frequent lower dosing leads to lower peak levels and may induce less systemic side-effects.

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Chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyradiculoneuropathy (CIDP) patients treated with intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIg) usually start with a standard dosage of 2 g/kg bodyweight. Only a minority of patients has a sustained improvement, and most require ongoing maintenance treatment. Preferred IVIg regimens, however, vary considerably between doctors and at present it is unknown which is optimal.

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Importance: There is an urgent need for biomarkers to monitor treatment efficacy and anticipate outcome in patients with Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS).

Objective: To assess whether there is an association between serum albumin levels, a widely used and relatively easily measurable biomarker of health and inflammation, and the clinical course and outcome of GBS in patients treated with intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG).

Design, Setting, And Participants: We used serum samples derived from a cohort of patients with GBS admitted to hospitals across the Netherlands participating in national GBS studies from May 5, 1986, through August 2, 2000.

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Treatment of Guillain-Barré syndrome with a standard course of high-dose intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIg) results in a variable clinical recovery which is associated with changes in serum IgG levels after treatment. The neonatal Fc-receptor protects IgG from degradation, and a genetic polymorphism in its promoter region that influences the expression of Fc-receptor, may in part explain the variation in IgG levels and outcome. This polymorphism was determined by polymerase chain reaction in a cohort of 257 patients with Guillain-Barré syndrome treated with IVIg.

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Intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIg) products from different pharmaceutical companies vary in composition, in part because of the selected blood donors and production process. N-glycosylation of the Fc-portion of IgG varies between blood donors and may influence both the side-effects and therapeutic effectiveness of IVIg. At present, the variation in Fc N-glycosylation between IVIg products has not been defined.

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Objective: Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS) is a postinfectious neuropathy most frequently caused by Campylobacter jejuni. Lipo-oligosaccharides (LOS), expressed by C. jejuni induce antibodies that cross-react with self-glycolipids in peripheral nerves, causing neuropathy.

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Intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIg) is the treatment of choice for Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS), an immune-mediated peripheral neuropathy causing rapidly progressive limb weakness and respiratory failure. The working mechanism of IVIg in autoimmune diseases has not been elucidated, but previous studies indicate that some anti-inflammatory effects may be mediated by the N-glycosylation of the Fc-portion of IgG. GBS is a model disease to investigate these effects because GBS is an acute and monophasic disorder usually affecting healthy persons, which is treated with a standard course of IVIg, although the clinical response is highly variable.

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