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At least 271 records · Page 15Linked to original sources
PubMed1998

[Frequency of autoimmune diseases in 218 patients with autoimmune thyroid pathologies].

PURPOSE: The aim of our study was to investigate the frequency of auto-immune diseases in patients suffering from autoimmune thyroid diseases. METHOD: We realised a retrospective study from 1981 to 1993 including 218 patients suffering from thyroiditis who were followed in the same hospital service. There were 202 women and 16 men with a mean age 49 at the moment their thyroid pathology was discovered. RESULTS: Thirty patients had one or more autoimmune disease associated to their thyroid disorders, representing 13.7% of total patients. The two most frequent autoimmune diseases were lupus and Sjögren's syndrome. In 17 cases the diagnosis of the associated autoimmune disease was made simultaneously. The systemic disease preceded with an 8-year delay the thyroid disease in five cases, and the thyroid disease was annunciatory in eight cases with a delay of 5 years. The frequency of autoimmune diseases seems to be higher in patients suffering from thyroid disorders than in the general population. They are probably common physiopathological mechanisms. CONCLUSION: The frequency of these associations suggests the need for a long-lasting survey of those patients having thyroid disorders. Initial evaluation and a regular checking in patients suffering from an autoimmune disease is recommenced.

Comorbidity↗
PubMed1995

Vaccines to prevent and treat autoimmune diseases.

The current therapy for human autoimmune disease is based on nonselective immunosuppression achieved by corticosteroids or cytotoxic drugs. This form of therapy is toxic and frequently not effective in curing the disease. The study of experimental autoimmune disease models indicates that the pathogenic population of immune cells is restricted in terms of T-cell receptor gene usage and peptide epitopes recognized in the self-antigens. The recent developments in understanding of the pathophysiology of autoimmune disease point to the crucial role of the pathogenic T cell, the autoantigenic peptide, and the major histocompatibility complex molecules as well as the regulatory T-cell population in the disease process. The purpose of this review is to describe the use of vaccines to prevent and treat autoimmune disease. Encouraging results in animal models using vaccines based on the pathogenic T cell or the autoantigen have prompted the design of novel and selective immune-based therapies for human autoimmune disease.

Animals↗
PubMed1992

Autoimmune diseases in pregnancy.

Autoimmune diseases are a significant problem in women of reproductive age. This article reviews some of the more common autoimmune disorders and discusses their diagnosis and management during pregnancy. The effects of the autoimmune disorder on pregnancy and the effects of pregnancy on the course of the autoimmune disorder are also discussed with an emphasis on the implications for clinical management.

Antiphospholipid Syndrome↗
PubMed2001

Protective role of infections and vaccinations on autoimmune diseases.

Infectious agents may induce autoimmune disease through several mechanisms, notably antigen mimicry and inflammation of the target organ; conversely, infections may protect from autoimmune diseases. This paradoxical effect has been demonstrated for a number of bacteria, viruses and parasites on a variety of spontaneous or experimentally induced animal models of autoimmune diseases (e.g. experimental allergic encephalomyelitis, lupus mice, non-obese diabetic mice). The mechanisms of the protection are still ill-defined, and probably vary according to models. Stimulation of immunoregulatory CD4 T cells has been shown to play a central role in several major models. The role of superantigens is also important, like that of Toll-like receptors. Antigen competition is another major mechanism, itself open to several interpretations. Epidemiological data support a protective role of infections on human allergic and autoimmune diseases. These diseases are much more common in countries with high socio-economic development (typically Northern countries in Europe). The reason for this cannot be fully explained by genetic differences because migrating populations develop these diseases with the same incidence of the adoptive country rather than that of the country of origin. It is interesting that the frequency of these diseases has been increasing in developed countries over the last 20 years but not in undeveloped ones.

Animals↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Analysis of the ulsefulnes of contrast echocardiography and nuclear medicine in cardiovascular affection due to autoimmune diseases].

A significant correlation between autoimmune diseases such as systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and premature or accelerated coronary atherosclerosis was found. The objectives of the study were: a) evaluate myocardial perfusion in patients with rheumatic diseases by means of contrast echocardiography (CE) and to establish its usefulness as compared to the results obtained by nuclear medicine (NM) (reference method). b) evaluate the prevalence of alterations in subclinical myocardial perfusion in autoimmune diseases and to establish a strategy to evaluate the cardiovascular changes in this disease. Myocardial perfusion in 37 outpatients of the rheumatology department was evaluated by CE at rest and with pharmacological stress (dobutamine) and NM. The prevalence of alterations in the myocardial perfusion in autoimmune diseases by CE and NM, when these methods were analyzed independently or when both methods were used was 27%. The positive predictive value (PPV) and negative predictive value (NPV) of both tests was 80% and 93%, respectively, the sensitivity was 80% and the specificity was 93%. The prevalence of alterations of perfusion in the primary antiphospholipid syndrome (PAPS) was of 30%. In this patients it was found that when both diagnostic tests are performed, NM reaches a sensitivity of 100% if the CE is positive and an specificity of 100% when the CE is negative. We can conclude that it is important to determine the presence of subclinic coronary artery disease in patients with autoimmune disease by noninvasive studies such as Sestamibi SPECT and/or CE for assessment of myocardial perfusion in order to plan an adequate treatment and follow-up.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1997

An evolution-based hypothesis on the origin and mechanisms of autoimmune disease.

The pathogenesis of autoimmune disease remains an enigma. Here, the condition is analysed from an evolutionary standpoint, and the thesis developed that viruses, in particular retroviruses, are important to our evolution, and that their inappropriate re-expression by repetitive (? ischaemic) cell damage in individuals of appropriate major histocompatibility type, leads to autoimmune disease. Such a view requires a slight adjustment to traditional ways of seeing Darwinian evolution, but one which makes real sense of the MHC-restricted nature of the adaptive immune response.

Animals↗
PubMed1997

Bone marrow transplantation for therapy in autoimmune disease.

A variety of clinical and experimental reports have shown the interdependence between bone marrow and autoimmune diseases. Autoimmune diseases can be transferred as well as cured by bone marrow transplantation (BMT). The widespread application of this therapeutic approach is limited today by the morbidity and mortality associated with BMT, including failure of engraftment, graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) and the toxicity from lethal conditioning approaches. Mixed chimerism (with the advantage of superior immunocompetence of the host and a relative protection against GVHD) can be achieved with incomplete ablation conditioning regimens. BMT may provide a potential strategy to treat those autoimmune diseases for which today only symptomatic treatment is available.

Animals↗
PubMed2003

Interleukin 4 treatment of psoriasis: are pleiotropic cytokines suitable therapies for autoimmune diseases?

Many human autoimmune diseases are still treated by a combination of corticosteroids and general immunosuppression. A better understanding of the pathogenesis of these diseases has led to therapies that are more specific than current therapies of some of these disorders. In psoriasis, T helper (Th) cells with a pro-inflammatory phenotype (Th1) are considered essential to the disease process. A recent clinical trial of interleukin 4 in psoriasis has demonstrated that such pleiotropic cytokines can be used safely and effectively to correct imbalances in immune function.

Adjuvants, Immunologic↗
PubMed1997

Development of a protocol for allogeneic marrow transplantation for severe systemic sclerosis: paradigm for autoimmune disease.

Some types of severe autoimmune disease are associated with significant morbidity and a high mortality rate. Many of these cases occur in young adults who, even if they survive, become severely debilitated. Systemic sclerosis (SSc) is a paradigm for other severe autoimmune diseases in which patients with poor prognostic features can be identified early in the course of the disease. Allogeneic marrow transplantation may be effective for the control of autoimmune diseases like SSc because the preparative regimen will significantly suppress the host immune system and the antihost effects of the donor immune system in the engrafted marrow will help maintain the suppression of the host immune system. Considering the morbidity and poor prognosis associated with severe SSc and the favorable outcome now associated with allogeneic marrow transplantation from HLA identical siblings for other nonmalignant diseases, Phase I and II studies are warranted. These will evaluate the safety of allogeneic marrow transplantation and explore its role in the management and control of a severe autoimmune disease. We review issues important in the development of an allogeneic marrow transplant protocol for severe SSc, including patient selection, plan of treatment, prevention of graft versus host disease, supportive care, and evaluation after transplant.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2005

Non-HLA associations with autoimmune diseases.

Susceptibility to autoimmune diseases (AID) has been associated with multiple combinations of genes and environmental or stochastic factors. The strongest influence on susceptibility to autoimmunity is the major histocompatibility complex (MHC), in particular HLA; however, linkage analyses among multiple affected family members have established that non-MHC chromosomal susceptibility regions also influence the susceptibility towards AID. Besides HLA, three non-HLA genes have been convincingly associated with different AID: Citotoxic T lymphocyte-associated antigen 4 (CTLA4), Protein Tyrosine Phosphatase (PTPN22) and Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha (TNF), indicating that autoimmune phenotypes could represent pleiotropic outcomes of non-specific diseases' genes that underline similar immunogenetic mechanisms. Identification of genes that generate susceptibility will enhance our understanding of the mechanisms that mediate these complex diseases and will allow us to predict and/or prevent them as well as to discover new therapeutic interventions.

Abatacept↗
PubMed1990

Autoantibodies and autoimmune diseases in young diabetics.

Another autoimmune disease was found to accompany insulin dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM) in 14% of the young diabetics (n = 14) studied. Thyroid autoimmune disease was the most common of the accompanying autoimmune diseases, and was detected in 11% (n = 15) of the patients. Two thirds of the IDDM patients with autoimmune thyroiditis were hypothyroid, one was hyperthyroid, and 20% lacked detectable thyroid antibodies when thyroid disease was diagnosed. Coeliac disease was found in 2% of the patients, and one had Addison's disease. Autoantibodies were found in one third of the patients. Thyroid microsomal antibodies were detected in 22% of the patients, IgA anti-gliadin in 11%, gastric parietal cell antibodies in 3% and rheumatoid factor in 7%. Autoimmune disease and the relevant autoantibodies coexisted in 11% of the patients. Autoimmune disorders and autoantibodies were not associated to any particular HLA type. The distribution of the HLA-types in the patients was unusual in that the frequency of HLA-DR3 was not increased. The value of autoantibody tests in the diagnosis of functional disorders of the thyroid and of coeliac disease are discussed.

Adult↗
PubMed2005

Peptide-based therapeutic vaccines for allergic and autoimmune diseases.

Allergic and autoimmune diseases are forms of immune hypersensitivity that increasingly cause chronic ill health. Most current therapies treat symptoms rather than addressing underlying immunological mechanisms. The ability to modify antigen-specific pathogenic responses by therapeutic vaccination offers the prospect of targeted therapy resulting in long-term clinical improvement without nonspecific immune suppression. Examples of specific immune modulation can be found in nature and in established forms of immune desensitization. Understanding and exploiting common mechanisms such as the ability to induce antigen-specific regulatory cells should allow the development of effective therapeutic strategies for both forms of immunopathology. Targeting pathogenic T cells using vaccines consisting of synthetic peptides representing T cell epitopes is one such strategy that is currently being evaluated with encouraging results. Future challenges in the development of therapeutic vaccines include selection of appropriate antigens and peptides, optimization of peptide dose and route of administration and identifying strategies to induce bystander suppression.

Antigen-Presenting Cells↗