Predictors of overlapping autoimmune disease in Neuromyelitis Optica Spectrum disorder (NMOSD): A retrospective analysis in two inner-city hospitals.

BACKGROUND: The coexistence of Neuromyelitis Optica spectrum disorder (NMOSD) with other autoimmune diseases (AD-NMOSD) presents worse clinical outcomes and healthcare costs than NMOSD alone (NMOSD-only). NMOSD and other autoimmune diseases also have a higher prevalence and morbidity in Black. We aim to compare clinical features and treatment responses in NMOSD patients with and without overlapping autoimmunity in a predominantly Black cohort. We further identify predictors associated with each clinical subtype. METHODS: AD-NMOSD (n = 14) and NMOSD-only (n = 27) patients were identified retrospectively. Demographic, clinical, laboratory, imaging, and response to treatment data were examined. RESULTS: Our cohort was predominately Black (82.9%). The prevalence of grouped-comorbidities, history of infections, sensory symptoms, Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS) before treatment, double-stranded DNA, antinuclear, ribonucleoprotein, and antiphospholipid antibodies, spinal-cord edema, white matter occipital lesions, and the levels of C-reactive protein, urine protein/creatinine, white blood cell count in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), were higher in AD-NMOSD patients (p < 0.05 and/or Cramer's V > 30, Cohen's d > 50), whereas the age of males, visual symptoms, serum albumin, platelet count, and optic nerve enhancement were lower. EDSS after treatment improved in both groups being more evident in NMOSD-only patients (p = 0.003, SE = 0.58 vs p = 0.075, SE = 0.51). Other variables had a close to moderate SE, and others did not differ between NMOSD subtypes. A higher frequency of grouped-comorbidities, lower serum albumin, and platelet count were independently associated with a higher risk for AD-NMOSD. CONCLUSIONS: Some clinical features between AD-NMOSD and NMOSD-only patients were similar, while others differed. Comorbidities, serum albumin, and platelet count may be independent predictors of AD-NMOSD.

Connective Tissue Disorders in Patients With Thrombotic Thrombocytopenic Purpura: A Retrospective Analysis Using a National Database.

BACKGROUND: Prior reports have shown acquired thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (TTP) co-existing with connective tissue disorders (CTD). However, these are mainly limited to case reports and case-series reports, and the patient characteristics and clinical outcomes in these patients are not well known. METHODS: We used National Inpatient Sample and Nationwide Inpatient Sample (NIS) database for the years 2009 to 2016 to identify all adult patients with TTP and searched for either the presence or absence of any co-existing CTD. These two cohorts of TTP patients were then compared using statistical methods for baseline patient characteristics and clinical outcomes. The primary outcome of interest was the all-cause in-hospital mortality and the secondary outcomes were in-hospital length of stay, in-hospital total charge and in-hospital complications. RESULTS: Of the 14,400 cases of TTP diagnosed between 2009 and 2016, nearly 9% (n = 1,247) had one or more underlying CTD. Patients with TTP were more likely to be young, black, female, with more than one comorbidity and with private insurance if they had an underlying CTD than when they did not have any underlying CTD. There was no difference in regards to the size, location or type of the hospital, or the time taken to initiate plasmapheresis. Patients being managed for TTP had a longer mean length of hospital stay and a greater mean total inpatient stay charge if they had underlying CTD. There was however no difference in the risks of inpatient mortality, acute coronary syndrome, cardiac arrest, acute stroke, need for mechanical ventilation or hemodialysis. CONCLUSION: TTP and CTD frequently co-existed and contributed to a longer hospital stay and a greater hospital charge.