Clinical rheumatology
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Clinical rheumatology · Aug 2009
ReviewDiscovertebral (Andersson) lesions of the spine in ankylosing spondylitis revisited.
A well-known complication in patients with ankylosing spondylitis (AS) is the development of localised vertebral or discovertebral lesions of the spine, which was first described by Andersson in 1937. Since then, many different terms are used in literature to refer to these localised lesions of the spine, including the eponym 'Andersson lesion' (AL). The use of different terms reflects an ongoing debate on the exact aetiology of the AL. ⋯ There is no indication for a diagnostic biopsy. Surgical instrumentation and fusion is considered the principle management in symptomatic AL that fails to resolve from a conservative treatment. We advise to use the term Andersson lesion for these spinal lesions in patients with AS.
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Clinical rheumatology · Aug 2009
Mean platelet volume in children with familial Mediterranean fever.
Familial Mediterranean fever (FMF) is the most common inherited periodic fever syndrome characterized by recurrent episodes of serositis. Recently, a few studies have suggested that FMF is related to increased risk of atherosclerosis. Mean platelet volume (MPV) is a marker of platelet activation. ⋯ The mean platelet counts of FMF patients during attack were higher than the healthy controls (p = 0.02). There was an inverse correlation between MPV and mean PLT in the attack-free period (r = -446, p = 0.01). This study suggests that an early atherosclerosis marker, MPV, is not elevated in pediatric FMF patients on colchicine treatment.