EGPA disease symptoms don’t vary with ANCA status, study finds

EGPA disease symptoms don’t vary with ANCA status, study finds

Symptoms and disease manifestations of eosinophilic granulomatosis with polyangiitis (EGPA), a rare type of ANCA-associated vasculitis (AAV), are generally similar between patients with and without ANCAs, the self-reactive antibodies that drive most AAV cases. That’s according to a study analyzing data from a registry of people with vasculitis, or…

Sinonasal manifestations in GPA vary with disease activity: Study

Sinonasal manifestations — those encompassing the nose and the paranasal sinuses, or the air-filled cavities around the nose — in granulomatosis with polyangiitis (GPA) vary among patients, based on disease activity and duration. That’s according to a small, retrospective study of GPA patients with sinonasal manifestations seen at a…

GPA vasculitis wreaked havoc in my life, but I’m enduring

Christine MacFadyen’s symptoms appeared 15 years ago, and she was diagnosed five years ago. (Photos courtesy of Christine MacFadyen) This is Christine MacFadyen’s story: I was a fun-loving, always smiling, energetic, adventurous woman. I was only 24 and had just graduated with my college degree in early childhood care…

Immune protein CX3CL1 may be biomarker of active MPA, GPA

High blood levels of the protein CX3CL1, a pro-inflammatory immune signal that appears to be associated with blood vessel inflammation, can accurately discriminate microscopic polyangiitis (MPA) and granulomatosis with polyangiitis (GPA) patients with active disease from those without, a study found. Importantly, high CX3CL1 levels were found to increase the…

Finding hope amid the life-changing challenges of vasculitis

Rob Nelson explores Peggy’s Cove in Nova Scotia, Canada, in fall 2021. (Photos courtesy of Rob Nelson) This is Rob Nelson’s story: Receiving a vasculitis diagnosis has a dramatic effect physically, emotionally, and socially on both those with the disease and their families. Like many conditions,…

ANCA antibodies against both PR3, MPO result in hybrid AAV features

People with ANCA-associated vasculitis (AAV) who are positive for antibodies against both myeloperoxidase (MPO) and proteinase 3 (PR3) show a combination of clinical characteristics from patients with each antibody type, according to a recent study in China. While double-positive patients are generally more similar to those with MPO-ANCAs, particularly…