O teste do anti-HSP70 na investigação da etiologia auto-imune da Doença de Ménière

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The prevalence of anti-cyclic citrullinated peptide antibodies in juvenile idiopathic arthritis

Objetivos: Avaliar a presença de anticorpos contra peptídeos cíclicos citrulinados em uma coorte de pacientes com artrite idiopática juvenil. Métodos: A presença de anticorpos contra peptídeos cíclicos citrulinados foi avaliada por ensaio imunoenzimático (ELISA) no soro de pacientes com artrite idiopática juvenil com idade inferior a 18 anos, acompanhados no ambulatório de reumatologia pediátrica do Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre, com tempo de diagnóstico de doença de, no mínimo, 6 meses. Também foi estudada a presença do fator reumatóide IgM e do fator antinuclear em células Hep-2. Resultados: Foram analisadas amostras séricas de 45 pacientes com artrite idiopática juvenil. A presença de títulos elevados de anticorpos contra peptídeos cíclicos citrulinados foi encontrada somente no soro de uma criança (2%), a qual apresentava quadro de poliartrite com fator reumatóide reagente. Conclusões: O anticorpo contra peptídeos cíclicos citrulinados pode ser detectado em crianças com artrite idiopática juvenil, mas em freqüência muito inferior aos adultos com artrite reumatóide. Torna-se importante avaliar se anticorpos contra peptídeos cíclicos citrulinados podem identificar os pacientes com artrite idiopática juvenil com potencial de evolução para artrite reumatóide do adulto.Objectives: To assess the presence of anti-cyclic citrullinated peptide antibodies in a cohort of patients with juvenile idiopathic arthritis. Methods: Anti-cyclic citrullinated peptide antibodies was tested for with an enzyme linked immunoabsorbent assay (ELISA) in serum samples of patients from the Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre, all less than 18 years old and with previous diagnosis for at least 6 months. IgMRF (rheumatoid factor) and antinuclear antibodies in Hep-2 cells were also assayed. Results: Serum samples were analyzed from 45 patients. The presence of high levels of anti-cyclic citrullinated peptide antibodies was found in the serum of just one child (2%), who presented seropositive polyarthritis. Conclusions: Anti-cyclic citrullinated peptide antibodies can be detected in children with juvenile idiopathic arthritis, but much less frequently than in adults with rheumatoid arthritis. It still remains to be determined whether anti-cyclic citrullinated peptide antibodies can identify a subset of juvenile idiopathic arthritis patients with the potential to progress to adult rheumatoid arthritis

O teste do anti-HSP70 na investigação da etiologia auto-imune da Doença de Ménière

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An international SUrvey on non-iNvaSive tecHniques to assess the mIcrocirculation in patients with RayNaud'\u80\u99s phEnomenon (SUNSHINE survey)

To canvas opinion concerning the role of non-invasive techniques in the assessment of patients with Raynaud's phenomenon (Rp) in clinical and research settings: four nailfold capillaroscopy methods [videocapillaroscopy (NVC), dermoscopy, stereomicroscopy, digital USB microscopy], four laser Doppler methods (laser Doppler flowmetry, imaging, anemometry/velocimetry, laser speckle contrast analysis), thermographic imaging, and upper limb arterial Doppler ultrasound. Emails with a link to the survey were sent to physicians from the European Scleroderma Trials and Research group (EUSTAR), the EULAR Study Group on Microcirculation in Rheumatic Diseases (SG_MC/RD) and members of the pediatric rheumatology Email board. The main descriptive analysis related to physicians looking after adult patients, with some analysis also of opinions from paediatric rheumatologists. 106 'adult physicians' responded (a response rate of 25.8%), of whom 68.9% were European, and 81.1% practising for more than 10 years. Nineteen paediatricians responded. The most widely available technique was NVC (72.7%). Nailfold capillaroscopy was most frequently performed by the physician him/herself, using different types of equipment relating to availability. Most rheumatologists reported high levels of appropriateness for NVC in both clinical and research settings for global assessment and differential diagnosis of Rp. Other techniques were less used. Of all the different techniques, nailfold capillaroscopy was the one most used in both clinical and research settings by adult physicians, the majority of whom use NVC in their everyday practice. The low proportion of clinicians using other techniques suggests that these are currently mainly research tools, available only in specialist centres