A Case of Off-Pump Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting Following High-Dose Dexamethasone Therapy in a Patient with Idiopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpura / 日本心臓血管外科学会雑誌

Man in his 70s, who had suffered from idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP), was admitted to our hospital with chest pain at rest. Coronary angiography revealed obstruction of the right coronary artery and triple vessel disease. Because a bleeding tendency was expected during coronary artery bypass grafting, we performed percutaneous coronary intervention to the culprit lesion first, and then intravenous immunoglobulin and high dose dexamethasone were tried. His platelet count rose from 49,000 to 103,000/mm3, so we performed coronary artery bypass grafting. The patient had no postoperative hemorrhagic complications. We believe that high dose dexamethasone therapy is useful for patients with ITP who need surgery immediately.

A comparative study of human immunoglobulin versus recombinant human tumor necrosis factor-α receptor Ⅱ:IgG Fc fusion protein in the treatment of toxic epidermal necrolysis / 中华皮肤科杂志

Objective:To evaluate and compare efficacy of intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) versus recombinant human tumor necrosis factor-α receptor Ⅱ:IgG Fc fusion protein (rhTNFR:Fc) in the treatment of toxic epidermal necrolysis (TEN) .Methods:Clinical data were collected from patients with TEN treated with IVIG or rhTNFR:Fc in Wuhan No.1 Hospital from 2013 to 2019. There were 11 patients in the IVIG group, including 3 males and 8 females, aged 25-72 years, and the median TEN-specific severity-of-illness score (SCORTEN) was 3 points; there were 10 patients in the rhTNFR:Fc group, including 5 males and 5 females, aged 32-84 years, and the median SCORTEN was 2 points. These patients all showed no response to the 5-day treatment with prednisolone acetate at a dose of 0.6-1.0 mg·kg -1·d -1, and then received IVIG at a dose of 400 mg·kg -1·d -1 for 5 consecutive days, or subcutaneous injection of rhTNFR:Fc at a dose of 25 mg every other day for 4-6 sessions. Changes in skin lesions and adverse events were recorded in the 2 groups. Statistical analysis was carried out by using Mann-Whitney U test. Results:Compared with the rhTNFR:Fc group, the IVIG group showed a significant decrease in the time to onset of reduction of skin lesion exudate (1.73 ± 1.19 days vs. 3.00 ± 1.56 days, P < 0.05) , time to onset of pain relief in the lesion area (1.64 ± 1.28 days vs. 3.70 ± 1.63 days, P < 0.05) , time to lightening of color of the lesion base (2.45 ± 1.12 days vs. 3.90 ± 1.59 days, P < 0.05) , time to onset of new epidermis growth (3.09 ± 1.13 days vs. 5.20 ± 1.22 days, P < 0.05) , and in the time to onset of lesion drying at the intertriginous sites (4.82 ± 2.22 days vs. 7.90 ± 3.14 days, P < 0.05) . However, there was no significant difference in the length of hospital stay between the IVIG group (17.70 ± 8.33 days) and rhTNFR:Fc group (16.70 ± 4.71 days, P > 0.05) . No adverse reactions were observed during the treatment, and no recurrence or complications were found in the 21 patients during the follow-up of 6 months. Conclusion:IVIG and rhTNFR:Fc are both effective in the treatment of TEN, but IVIG is superior to rhTNFR:Fc in terms of the time to onset of pain relief, skin lesion exudate reduction and epidermal growth.

Treatment of patients with immunodeficiency: Medication, gene therapy, and transplantation

Abstract Objectives: To provide an overview of drug treatment, transplantation, and gene therapy for patients with primary immunodeficiencies. Source of data: Non-systematic review of the literature in the English language carried out at PubMed. Synthesis of data: The treatment of patients with primary immunodeficiencies aims to control their disease, especially the treatment and prevention of infections through antibiotic prophylaxis and/or immunoglobulin replacement therapy. In several diseases, it is possible to use specific medications for the affected pathway with control of the condition, especially in autoimmune or autoinflammatory processes associated with inborn immunity errors. In some diseases, treatment can be curative through hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT); more recently, gene therapy has opened new horizons through new technologies. Conclusions: Immunoglobulin replacement therapy remains the main therapeutic tool. Precision medicine with specific drugs for altered immune pathways is already a reality for several immune defects. Advances in the management of HSCT and gene therapy have expanded the capacity for curative treatments in patients with primary immunodeficiencies.

Hypogammaglobulinemia: a diagnosis that must not be overlooked

Humoral immunological defects are frequent and important causes of hypogammaglobulinemia, leading to recurrent infections, autoimmunity, allergies, and neoplasias. Usually, its onset occurs in childhood or during the second and third decades of life; however, the diagnosis is made, on average, 6 to 7 years afterwards. As a consequence, antibody defects can lead to sequelae. Here we describe the clinical-laboratory characteristics, treatment, and prognoses of patients with hypogammaglobulinemia. An observational, cross-sectional, and retrospective study of patients attending the recently established outpatient group of Clinical Immunology between 2013 and 2018 was carried out. Patients with IgG levels below 2 standard deviations from the mean values for the age and/or impaired antibody response were included. Eight patients (3 F and 5 M; median age=41 years (16-65), average symptom onset at 25 years (1-59), and time to diagnosis of 10 years were included. The main infections were: sinusitis in 7/8, pneumonia in 6/8, otitis in 2/8, tonsillitis and diarrhea in 2/8, and diarrhea in 2/8 patients. Hypothyroidism was identified in 4/8 (50%) patients. Rhinitis was found in 7/8 (87.5%) and asthma in 3/8 (37.5%) patients. The tomographic findings were consolidations, atelectasis, emphysema, ground glass opacity, budding tree, bronchial thickening, and bronchiectasis. Immunoglobulin reposition was used between 466 and 600 mg/kg monthly (514.3 mg·kg-1·dose-1). Prophylactic antibiotic therapy was included in 7/8 (87.5%) patients. Airway manifestations prevailed in patients with hypogammaglobulinemia. There is a need for educational work to reduce the time of diagnosis and initiation of treatment, avoiding sequelae.

Kawasaki Disease in India – Lessons Learnt Over the Last 20 Years.

Over the last 20 years, Kawasaki disease is being increasingly recognized in India and it may soon replace acute rheumatic fever to become the commonest cause of acquired heart disease amongst children. However, the vast majority of children with Kawasaki disease in India are still not being diagnosed. Diagnosis of Kawasaki disease is based on a constellation of clinical findings which have a typical temporal sequence. All pediatricians must we familiar with the nuances involved in arriving at a diagnosis of Kawasaki disease. With early diagnosis and prompt treatment, the risk of coronary artery abnormalities can be significantly reduced.

Treatment of Cytomegalov irus-associated IgA Nephropathy by Deflazacort and Intrav enous Immunoglobulin

It has been suspected that various infections, including cytomegalovirus(CMV) infection, are associated with IgA nephropathy. In case of CMV infection, ganciclovir is known to be a treatment of choice for severe CMV infection in general. But ganciclovir has a lot of severe toxicity, so children with normal immunity are seldom treated by ganciclovir when CMV infection is suspected. On the other hand, intravenous immunoglobulin can also be used to treat CMV infection.

Passive immunization using purified IgYs against infectious bursal disease of chickens in Pakistan

Infectious bursal disease (IBD) is an acute and highly contagious disease of young chickens caused by Birnavirus. Mortality of infected birds can be best prevented if injected with antibodies. The present study was an attempt to raise specific hyper-immune polyclonal antibodies against IBD virus in Pakistan. Commercial layers divided into four groups were injected with IBD vaccine subcutaneously according to four different treatment regimens. Eggs were collected daily and antibodies were purified from yolk with dextran sulphate. Titers of antibodies in serum and yolk were evaluated with enzyme linked immunosorbant assay and agar gel precipitation test. Antibody titers were significantly higher in yolk than serum. Eggs collected at 28 days post-vaccination had maximum antibody titers. Of treatment regimens, T3 was found to be most effective for hyperimmunization. Lyophilized antibodies stored at 4oC did not lose their activity till the end of experiment. IBD virus infected birds were injected with purified antibodies which induced 92% recovery as compared to control birds. The study implicates that the purified antibodies may be useful as a therapeutic agent to cure IBD infected birds.