E Toussirot

..Targeting the IL-23/Th17 axis seems to be a relevant and realistic therapeutic approach and these new agents pave the way for additive and alternative treatments to currently available biologics in chronic inflammatory diseases...

..The effect of biotherapies for RA on EBV-host relations needs to be investigated...

..It may therefore be regarded as a relevant outcome variable in clinical trials and for the management of patients with RA in clinical practice...

..To report our experience with rituximab therapy in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and a history of severe or recurrent bacterial infections...

..To describe cases of development of pulmonary nodulosis or aseptic granulomatous lung disease in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) receiving anti-tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) therapy...

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..Here, we evaluated circulating levels of sCTLA-4 as a marker of immune dysregulation in SpA. Intracellular CTLA-4 and levels of CTLA-4 transcript expression in peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBL) were also studied...

..Leptin production was reduced in contrast with normal levels of adiponectin. These adipokine results, together with high serum ghrelin levels, may influence the inflammatory response in AS...

..The influence of new and emergent treatments of these autoimmune diseases (biological therapies) on EBV load and the course of latent EBV infection requires further studies...

..Limited and various similar cases have been reported. It is generally considered that these granulomatous diseases are related to the anti-TNF-alpha agent...

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..Changes in the cytokine balance may be involved in these cases of induced sarcoidosis, which must be known by the clinician...

..Thus, the clinician must be familiar with the clinical characteristics and particularities of this group of inflammatory rheumatic diseases...

..In humans, the only relevant data available so far come from studies of HAT and HDAC expression in the synovial membrane of patients with rheumatoid arthritis. HDIs may hold promise for the treatment of inflammatory joint disease...

..However, the precise consequences of these elevated serum adiponectin levels on the metabolic syndrome development and atherosclerotic cardiovascular risk in this patient population still needs to be determined...

..International recommendations for the management of AS by the Assessment of Spondyloarthritis (ASAS) group were recently updated and discussed the respective place of each current therapeutic option in AS...

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..Thus, our results suggest that DMA*0103 could be an additional genetic factor for RA susceptibility in French whites...

..This study is restricted by the small number of tested RN patients, but the results suggest that the RA-associated alleles are poorly expressed in RN...

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..Multiple myeloma and primary hyperparathyroidism are two causes of hypercalcemia. This association has already been described to be not casual, despite their link is still unknown...

..This study evaluated the specific T cell response to EBV gp110 in patients with RA expressing or not the shared epitope and examined whether this immune cellular response might be related to disease activity and severity...

..As it is thought that QUS provides information about qualitative properties of bone, the normal results of QUS values in our patient series argue against modifications in AS bone micro-architecture...

..Despite these concerns, Anti-TNF represents a major therapeutic advancement in the treatment of AS...

..The original molecular structures of HLA-B27 are certainly involved in this complex physiopathology, but their direct influence on the disease remains to be precised...

..In parallel with pharmacotherapy, these procedures are of great importance in reducing stiffness and spinal ankylosis, and thus improve the patient's quality of life...

..These results suggest that VEGF and therefore angiogenesis may play a role in SpA pathogenesis and may serve as a disease activity marker in SpAs...

..Parsonage-Turner syndrome should be added to the list of manifestations of neuroborreliosis. Serological tests for Lyme disease should be performed routinely in patients with Parsonage-Turner syndrome...

..To assess the rate of occurrence and outcomes of herpes zoster in patients taking TNFalpha antagonists...

..Few cases of osteitis adjacent to kyphoplasty have been reported. The underlying pathophysiology may involve changes in vertebral loading and cement leakage into the intervertebral disk...

..Skin involvement in AS is dominated by psoriasis-type lesions. The occurrence of Sweet's syndrome is seldom reported in this condition...

..Diagnosis was confirmed by synovial fluid analysis and was associated with hypocalcemia. Only a few cases are reported in the literature. The mechanism of this potential side effect remains speculative...

..Further studies are required to confirm these preliminary data and to better determine the optimal regimen (dosage and rhythm) of administration...

..In patients on antiviral therapy, viral load monitoring should be continued, given the risk of escape phenomenon after several years...

..Several mutations of the alkaline phosphatase gene have been identified. The genotype is correlated with the phenotype: some mutations are associated with milder forms and others with more severe forms of the disease...

..Anti TNF-alpha agents may represent a possibility of treatment in cases of refractory polymyositis...

..In addition, the long-term use (efficacy and tolerability) of these two agents deserves attention...

..Thus, bisphosphonates may be reasonably used as a therapeutic agent in ankylosing spondylitis...

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..Infliximab is a major breakthrough in the management of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). We evaluated infliximab continuation rates and reasons for discontinuation in patients with RA...

..Our results suggest that OM-89 has immunomodulatory properties by inducing changes in PBMC cytokines release suggestive of an induced Tr1 response to OM-89...

..Discitis usually occurs at an advanced stage of AS under the form of an erosive condition related to both mechanical factors and osteoporosis. Inaugural or early discitis can occur, however, as a result of the inflammatory process...

..To report the features of malignancies responsible for a chest wall mass and involving the sternum, the sternocostal and/or sternoclavicular joints, the chondrocostal junction and/or the adjacent soft tissues...

..Thus, fat tissue is an active organ whose products contribute to inflammatory and degenerative processes underlying common joint diseases...

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..To study N-acetyl-beta-D-hexosaminidase (NAHase) activity in the sera of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients and to determine its source...

..The gonadotrophin-releasing hormone analogue treatment probably induced disturbances in the neuroendocrine system and the secretion of neurotransmitters, and may be suspected to be the cause of this case of fibromyalgia...

..This association was found to be weak and did not seem to be a predictor for the severity of the disease...

..Serological tests for HHV6 should be performed routinely in patients with suspected DRESS syndrome, although uncertainty persists about the link between HHV6 infection and DRESS syndrome...

..MRI has proved sensitive to change in patients taking TNF antagonists. An outcome measures in rheumatology clinical trials (OMERACT) task force is working on standardizing MRI scores for the spine and sacroiliac joints...

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..quot;Synovial cyst" is a misnomer for these giant lesions, which are geodes rather than cysts. Despite their low incidence, these lesions deserve attention because they raise diagnostic and therapeutic problems...

..The suggestive roentgenographic and MRI findings rule out the other painful conditions of the sesamoid bone. The features are reviewed and the treatment options discussed...

..To determine whether hepatitis C virus (HCV) RNA could be detected in the salivary glands of patients with both a diagnosis of Sjögren's syndrome (SS) and HCV infection...

..Early diagnosis and treatment may improve the prognosis. Tests for antibodies or viral DNA in cerebrospinal fluid can be helpful, although negative results do not rule out the diagnosis...

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..The dramatic improvement achieved by calcitonin therapy might be related to osteoclastic dysfunction in pycnodysostosis caused by a deficiency of cathepsin K, a cystein protease involved in bone matrix remodelling...

..To determine whether the -308 A/G tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNFalpha) gene polymorphism can predict the outcome of etanercept therapy in 86 patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), as already observed in patients treated with infliximab...