JCR: Journal of Clinical Rheumatology最新文献

Objectives: Behçet disease (BD) has heterogeneous presentations, mainly mucocutaneous, vascular, and ocular manifestations. The mechanisms associated with different phenotypes have not been clarified. We aimed to investigate the expression of innate and adaptive immunity-related cytokines in these 3 main BD phenotypes in active and untreated states and remission after treatment to be able to develop a cytokine-based treatment algorithm.

Methods: Serum samples were isolated from 41 patients with newly diagnosed active BD (aBD), which consisted of 19 mucocutaneous aBD, 11 ocular aBD (o-aBD), and 11 vascular aBD patients, 35 patients in remission (rBD), and 9 healthy controls (HC). Serum levels of each cytokine were measured with sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and analyzed as both raw measurements and corrected levels for each 1 million white blood cells.

Results: The study included 41 aBD patients (female/male [F/M]: 9/32; median age, 29 years), 35 rBD patients (F/M: 9/26; median age, 29 years), and 9 HC (F/M: 3/6; median age, 28 years). The serum interferon γ level was significantly higher in the aBD group than in the rBD (116 vs. 92 pg/mL, p = 0.022). The serum interleukin 35 (IL-35) level was significantly higher in the HC group compared with aBD and rBD ( p = 0.05). IL-17-related cytokines were lower in o-aBD. With treatment, they increased in o-aBD but decreased in mucocutaneous aBD and vascular aBD patients.

Conclusion: This study supports the involvement of both innate and T H 1-predominated adaptive immune responses across all BD phenotypes. The IL-17 and T H 17-related immune responses appear less prominent in ocular BD, which may explain the ineffectiveness of IL-17 blockade in treating ocular BD. These findings support the need for further studies using comprehensive gene expression analyses to develop targeted treatment strategies for BD phenotypes.

Objective: We evaluated a behaviorally designed intervention utilizing gamification and social support to improve physical activity and reduce symptoms in patients with osteoarthritis of the knee (KOA).

Methods: Veterans with KOA, aged 40-80 years, were enrolled in this randomized controlled trial. Participants received a Fitbit and completed a 2- to 4-week baseline period. A Web-based platform administered biweekly surveys after randomization and tracked physical activity. Participants selected a daily step goal that was 33%, 40%, or 50% above their baseline. The intervention arm received game playing aspects and a social support partner to advance weekly step performance while the control arm only received weekly updates. The primary outcome was the change in steps per day averaged over 2-week intervals. We used mixed effects regression, adjusting for baseline step count. Secondary outcomes assessed the change in KOOS (Knee Injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score) over 32 weeks.

Results: Thirty-one participants were included in the final analysis. Most participants were male (90.3%), Black (70.96%), had a mean (SD) age of 60 (13) years, and body mass index of 33.7 (5.9) kg/m 2 . Participants that received the intervention walked a total of 1119 (95% confidence interval: -562, 2799) more steps per day ( p = 0.19). The effect was greatest in the first 6 months (1491 [-272, 3254], p = 0.10). Compared with controls, those that received the intervention had improvement over time in total KOOS (mean 2-week change +0.62 [0.031, 1.20] vs -0.38 [-1.04, 0.28], p = 0.02) and several subscales.

Conclusions: This intervention demonstrated promise for promoting greater physical activity and improving symptoms in patients with KOA.

Background/objective: Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is associated with increased dementia risk. Whether this association is present among older adults with SLE is unclear. Further, whether individuals with concomitant SLE and dementia are at increased risk of emergency department (ED) use has not been explored. Using US Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (2006-2015) administrative claims data, we (1) quantified long-term all-cause dementia prevalence in adults with SLE ≥65 years of age and (2) determined whether dementia duration is associated with risk of ED visits in a cohort of older adults with SLE relative to comparators.

Methods: Medicare beneficiaries ≥65 years of age with SLE and age- and sex-matched comparators (1:4) with osteoarthritis were identified at baseline (2006). Dementia was considered a time-varying exposure, updated annually. Mixed-effect Poisson regression was used to estimate the effect of dementia duration on risk of multiple ED visits for the study period (January 2006 to September 2015), adjusting for relevant covariates.

Results: Baseline dementia prevalence was similar among beneficiaries with SLE (n = 1338 [4.6%]) and non-systemic rheumatic disease (non-SRD) comparators (n = 5352 [5.7%]). Stronger association between dementia duration and ED use was observed in older adults with SLE, including after adjustment for covariates (SLE: incidence rate ratio, 1.10; 95% confidence interval, 1.07-1.13; non-SRD: incidence rate ratio, 1.05; 95% confidence interval, 1.03-1.06).

Conclusions: Although dementia prevalence was similar between older adults with SLE and non-SRD comparators, dementia duration had a greater impact on ED use in aging adults with SLE versus non-SRD comparators. Geriatric assessment may be especially important in older adults with SLE.

Abstract: Women with systemic chronic inflammatory disease, such as those with scleroderma, systemic vasculitis, and Sjögren syndrome, need preconception evaluation by a multidisciplinary team. Counseling and pregnancy management should be tailored to patients' needs, considering specific disease features, organ involvement, treatment options, and risk factors to minimize risks of maternal-fetal complications during pregnancy.Additionally, considerations regarding fertility, assisted reproductive techniques, and contraception also need to be addressed for these women.In this narrative review, we integrate the current published literature with our expert opinion to address the issues faced by patients with the aforementioned inflammatory conditions.