Patricia Inacio, PhD, science writer —

Patients with ANCA-associated vasculitis carry a threefold higher risk for cardiovascular disease, and a eightfold greater risk for cerebrovascular accidents, compared to the general population, a long-term study shows. The study, “Risk of Cardiovascular Disease and Venous Thromboembolism Among Patients With Incident ANCA-Associated Vasculitis: A 20-Year Population-Based Cohort…

Patients with ANCA-associated vasculitis (AAV) have a higher prevalence of thyroid disease than the general population, a single-center retrospective analysis shows. But the increase in thyroid disease is not related to the use of anti-thyroid medications, researchers said. The study, “Increased Prevalence of Thyroid Disease in…

Chest manifestations and disease activity at diagnosis may help predict the risk of  infections during hospital stays in patients with anti-neutrophil cytoplasmic antibody (ANCA)-associated vasculitis (AAV), a retrospective study suggests. The South Korean study, “Birmingham vasculitis activity and chest manifestation at diagnosis can predict hospitalised infection in ANCA-associated vasculitis,”…

Measuring levels of protein CD25 in blood and urine can help determine if ANCA-associated vasculitis is affecting patients’ kidneys, a study suggests. A research team published the study in the journal Nephrology Dialysis Transplantation. The title is “Urinary and serum soluble CD25 complements urinary soluble CD163 to detect active…

Differences in red blood cell size may help predict how active a blood vessel condition called granulomatosis with polyangiitis will be, and whether patients are likely to have a poor outcome, a South Korean study suggests. Granulomatosis with polyangiitis is a form of ANCA-associated vasculitis, or AAV. The study, “Red…

Patients with antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibody (ANCA)-associated vasculitis (AAV) who receive daily oral cyclophosphamide have increased bone marrow toxicity and tend to be hospitalized more often because of infections, than patients who receive the treatment intravenously. Those findings were detailed in the report “Long-term outcomes of daily oral vs. pulsed…

Tailoring infusions of Rituxan (rituximab) according to ANCA status and/or levels of CD19-positive lymphocytes has no significant impact on the number of relapses experienced by ANCA-associated vasculitis (AAV) patients compared to those given systematic infusions, according to a Phase 3 trial. These findings were announced at the recent American…

Increases in the Birmingham Vasculitis Activity Score (BVAS) may work as an independent risk predictor for cardiovascular  disease (CVD)-related deaths in ANCA-associated vasculitis, a single-center study from China found. The study, “The BVAS is an independent predictor of cardiovascular events and cardiovascular disease-related mortality in patients with…

In patients with anti-neutrophil cytoplasmic antibody (ANCA)-associated vasculitis (AAV), Rituxan (rituximab) may lead to general decrease in antibody levels, increasing their risk for infections, finds a single-center retrospective study. The study, “Immunoglobulin levels and infection risk with rituximab induction for anti-neutrophil cytoplasmic antibody-associated vasculitis,” appeared in…

The Phase 3 ADVOCATE trial, evaluating ChemoCentryx‘s investigational drug avacopan (formerly CCX168) for the treatment of anti-neutrophil cytoplasmic antibody (ANCA)-associated vasculitis is now enrolling participants. The update is part of the company’s financial report for the second quarter of 2017. The study (NCT02994927), which aims to evaluate the safety…