A recent Arthritis & Rheumatology review article explores the immune system’s mechanism for creating B cells that respond to diverse pathogens while preserving immune tolerance & highlights key insights for rheumatologists.
Rheuminations: Can We Now Control the Wolf?
Lupus has always had a reputation for being a wild, unrestrained and enigmatic entity. In fact, the very name lupus comes from the Latin word for wolf, a gift from our Roman predecessors who saw a resemblance between lupus rashes and a wolf’s bite. Given the limitations of immunology back then, it is an incredibly…
Kidney Pathology for the Rheumatologist: Tips from an Expert
Renal biopsy is a valuable tool for the accurate diagnosis and management of patients with kidney involvement due to rheumatic disease. Agnes B. Fogo, MD, shared her expertise on renal pathology and insights into what rheumatologists should know, during a session at the 2022 ACR Education Exchange.
IgG4-Related Kidney Disease: Diagnostics, Manifestations & More
Immunoglobin G4-related disease (IgG4-RD) is a rare fibro-inflammatory disease of unknown etiology that has been recently recognized. It can cause fibro-inflammatory masses in almost every organ of the body and is associated with dense lymphoplasmacytic infiltration of IgG4-postitive plasma cells, storiform fibrosis and elevated levels of serum IgG4.1 IgG4-RD is a systemic disease that may…
Steroids May Increase Infection Risk in Patients with IgA Nephropathy
Treatment with oral methylprednisolone may be associated with an increased risk of serious adverse events, specifically infection, in patients with IgA nephropathy. Despite the five-times higher risk, study results also showed a three-times lower risk of kidney failure for the treatment group…
Allopurinol Appears More Renoprotective than Febuxostat in Older Adults
NEW YORK (Reuters Health)—The renal protective effect of allopurinol appears to differ from that of febuxostat in the elderly, according to new research. The study, of a nationally representative sample of Medicare patients, showed that allopurinol was associated with a greater reduction in the risk of incident kidney disease, report the authors online July 13…