Arthritis research & therapy
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Arthritis Res. Ther. · Jan 2010
ReviewGenetic associations in type I interferon related pathways with autoimmunity.
Type I interferons play an outstanding role in innate and adaptive immunity by enhancing functions of dendritic cells, inducing differentiation of monocytes, promoting immunoglobulin class switching in B cells and stimulating effector functions of T cells. The increased production of IFNα/β by plasmacytoid dendritic cells could be responsible for not only efficient antiviral defence, but it also may be a pathological factor in the development of various autoimmune disorders. ⋯ Patients with systemic lupus erythematosus, Sjögren's syndrome, dermatomyositis, psoriasis, and a fraction of patients with rheumatoid arthritis display a specific expression pattern of interferon-dependent genes in their leukocytes, termed the interferon signature. Here, in an attempt to understand the role of type I interferons in the pathogenesis of autoimmunity, we review the recent advances in the genetics of autoimmune diseases focusing on the association of genes involved in type I interferon pathways.
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Arthritis Res. Ther. · Jan 2010
ReviewInterstitial lung disease in connective tissue diseases: evolving concepts of pathogenesis and management.
Interstitial lung disease (ILD) is a challenging clinical entity associated with multiple connective tissue diseases, and is a significant cause of morbidity and mortality. Effective therapies for connective tissue disease-associated interstitial lung disease (CTD-ILD) are still lacking. Multidisciplinary clinics dedicated to the early diagnosis and improved management of patients with CTD-ILD are now being established. ⋯ Serum biomarkers may provide new insights as risk factors for pulmonary fibrosis and as measures of disease progression. Despite these recent advances, the management of patients with CTD-ILD remains suboptimal. Further studies are therefore urgently needed to better understand these conditions, and to develop effective therapeutic interventions.
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Arthritis Res. Ther. · Jan 2010
Localized 1H-NMR spectroscopy in patients with fibromyalgia: a controlled study of changes in cerebral glutamate/glutamine, inositol, choline, and N-acetylaspartate.
The purpose of this study was to investigate whether single-voxel (SV) proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS), diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI), and diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) detected differences between fibromyalgia (FM) patients and healthy controls. We also searched for correlations between neuroimaging abnormalities and neuropsychological variables. ⋯ Glx within the posterior gyrus could be a pathologic factor in FM. Hippocampal dysfunction may be partially responsible for the depressive symptoms of FM. Additional studies with larger samples are required to confirm these preliminary data.
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Arthritis Res. Ther. · Jan 2010
Influence of comorbidity with depression on interdisciplinary therapy: outcomes in patients with chronic low back pain.
Our previous work showed higher tumour necrosis factor (TNF)-α levels in patients with chronic low back pain (cLBP) compared to healthy controls. However, patients with depression as a comorbidity did not have higher TNF-α levels in comparison to patients without depression. In this study we investigated the influence of depression on therapy outcomes such as TNF-α serum levels, pain intensity and back function in patients with cLBP. Our hypothesis was that patients with both cLBP and depression benefit no less than patients with cLBP alone from the multidisciplinary pain therapy. ⋯ Depression as a comorbidity to chronic low back pain did not influence the serum TNF-α level in the course of six months, but seemed to affect the success of therapy. cLBP patients with comorbidity of depression benefit from multidisciplinary pain therapy not only to the same extent but also to a greater degree than cLBP patients without depression.
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Arthritis Res. Ther. · Jan 2010
Association between occupation and knee and hip replacement due to osteoarthritis: a case-control study.
The objective of this study was to examine the association between occupation and osteoarthritis (OA) leading to total knee (TKR) or hip (THR) joint replacement. ⋯ These results support an association in males between occupations with heavy physical load and both TKR and THR for OA.