Measuring immune cells called eosinophils can help predict the presence and severity of peripheral neuropathy (damage to nerves outside the brain and spinal cord) in people with eosinophilic granulomatosis with polyangiitis (EGPA), a study showed. In people with one of the other two types of ANCA-associated vasculitis (AAV) —…
Using both traditional and data-driven ways of grouping patients may give a clearer, more accurate picture of how different types of ANCA-associated vasculitis (AAV) behave over time and how best to treat each person, according to a study from Japan. Traditional ways of classifying AAV, based on symptoms or…
As we move through this season of gratitude — along with the stress, pressure, and emotional noise that often comes with the holidays — I find myself reflecting on the people who help us navigate this unpredictable, exhausting, and frequently overwhelming disease that is ANCA-associated vasculitis. Living with…
Older age, being male, smoking history, and having self-reactive antibodies targeting the myeloperoxidase (MPO) protein are significantly associated with a higher risk of interstitial lung disease (ILD) in people with ANCA-associated vasculitis (AAV). That’s according to a review and meta-analysis study, which also showed that certain imaging signs of…
Physicians experienced in treating ANCA-associated vasculitis (AAV) generally agree on which disease manifestations are driven by granulomas, or clusters of immune cells, according to a survey study. Such manifestations included masses on the lungs or behind the eye socket, narrowing of the airways below the vocal cords, and…
People with ANCA-associated vasculitis (AAV) who test positive for a staining pattern of self-reactive antibodies called cytoplasmic ANCA (C-ANCAs) are nearly five times more likely to have bleeding into the lungs’ air sacs, known as alveolar hemorrhage, a study found. C-ANCA is marked by the presence of ANCAs —…
I got a COVID-19 vaccine this week. It was the first one I’ve had since going off Rituxan (rituximab), and wow, it kicked my butt. It reminded me just how effective Rituxan is at wiping out the immune system, because without it, my little overactive system went into full overdrive.
In people with eosinophilic granulomatosis with polyangiitis (EGPA), those with skin or heart involvement have significantly higher blood levels of immunoglobulin E (IgE), a type of natural antibody frequently linked to EGPA, a study showed. Testing positive for the self-reactive antibodies ANCAs against the myeloperoxidase (MPO) protein tended to…
A protein known as NGAL — fully, neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin — appears to be a marker of disease activity and kidney damage severity in people with ANCA-associated vasculitis (AAV) who have kidney inflammation, according to new research by scientists in China. The team found that “in active AAV, [blood]…
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