Arthritis and rheumatism
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Arthritis and rheumatism · Jan 2005
Increase in activated CD8+ T lymphocytes expressing perforin and granzyme B correlates with disease activity in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus.
Cytotoxic T lymphocyte-mediated killing using granzyme B has recently been proposed to be a preferential and selective source of autoantigens in systemic autoimmune diseases, including systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), while other reports have indicated that cytolytic activity in SLE patients was decreased. The aim of this study was to examine the phenotypic and functional status of the CD8+ T cells in SLE patients. ⋯ DCs generated in the presence of sera from SLE patients with active disease could promote the differentiation of CD8+ effector T lymphocytes that are fully functional and able to generate SLE autoantigens. Our data disclose a new and pivotal role of activated CD8+ T lymphocytes in SLE pathogenesis.
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Arthritis and rheumatism · Jan 2005
C-reactive protein as a predictor of infliximab treatment outcome in patients with rheumatoid arthritis: defining subtypes of nonresponse and subsequent response to etanercept.
Nonresponse to anti-tumor necrosis factor alpha in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is poorly understood. The aims of this study were to define nonresponse patterns using infliximab and C-reactive protein (CRP) profiles, to assess the predictive power of a CRP response for outcome, and to correlate these findings with subsequent response to etanercept. ⋯ Infliximab NRs comprise subtypes with distinct CRP patterns. Failure to suppress the CRP at week 2 identified the majority of patients who were NRs at week 12. CRP suppression at week 12 in the NRs was associated with a late clinical improvement with infliximab treatment (24 weeks), whereas failure to suppress the CRP at week 12 was associated with a good response on switching to etanercept.
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Arthritis and rheumatism · Jan 2005
Repair of articular cartilage defect by autologous transplantation of basic fibroblast growth factor gene-transduced chondrocytes with adeno-associated virus vector.
To examine the effects of basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) gene-transduced chondrocytes on the repair of articular cartilage defects. ⋯ These results demonstrated that gene transfer to chondrocytes by an ex vivo method was established with the AAV vector, and transplantation of bFGF gene-transduced chondrocytes had a clear beneficial effect on the repair of rabbit articular cartilage defects.
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Arthritis and rheumatism · Dec 2004
Reports of joint instability in knee osteoarthritis: its prevalence and relationship to physical function.
To report the prevalence and relationship of self-reported knee instability to physical function in a sample of subjects with knee osteoarthritis (OA), and to discuss the implications of these observations for rehabilitation. ⋯ The results indicate that a substantial proportion of individuals with knee OA report episodes of knee instability during activities of daily living, and instability affects physical function beyond that which can be explained by contributions from other impairments such as knee pain, range of motion, and quadriceps strength. Knee instability is a problem that should be specifically addressed in rehabilitation programs and may require interventions beyond those that address pain, joint motion, and muscular strength, to maximize the effectiveness of rehabilitation for individuals with knee OA.