Benefits of anticitrullinated peptides examination in rheumatoid arthritis.

BACKGROUND: Anti-citrullinated peptides antibodies (ACPA) are specific for rheumatoid arthritis and have been implicated in disease pathogenesis. ACPA examination is a new component of ACR/EULAR 2010 classification criteria for rheumatoid arthritis. ACPA positivity predicts a more erosive disease course with severe joint damage and extra-articular manifestations. OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the benefits of ACPA examination in patients with early undifferentiated arthritis and patients with rheumatoid arthritis. METHODS: We examined patients with arthritis and tested them for ACPA positivity. In every individual patient we evaluated if ACPA examination was necessary to establish the diagnosis of rheumatoid arthritis, or to change treatment, or if the diagnosis could have been established without ACPA examination (ACR/EULAR 2010 classification criteria was met without ACPA scoring). RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: The study was placed in Slovak Republic. We examined 833 patients with arthritis. There were 43 patients, or 62% of a subgroup of 69 who were ACPA positive whose ACPA examination was not needed-ACR/EULAR criteria was met without ACPA scoring. This number represents 5.1% of the total number examined. There were 15 patients, or 22% of the subgroup and 1.8% of the total whose diagnosis was revised to rheumatoid arthritis due to ACPA positivity-ACR/EULAR criteria were met solely with ACPA scoring. There were 11 patients (16% and 1.3%) whose medication was changed due to ACPA positivity. ACPA examination is useful in 3.1% of all examined patients. When we correlate data on ACPA positive patients, 38% of the patients profit from ACPA examinations. Considering the relatively low price of ACPA testing, this examination should not be excluded.

[Hyponatremia - carbamazepine medication complications]. / Hyponatrémia - komplikácia liecby karbamazepínom.

Hyponatremia can be defined like the low sodium concentration, lower that 135 mmol/l. It becomes really serious when the concentration is lower than 120 mmol/l. The most frequent causes of hyponatremia are: the extrarenal loss (GIT, skin, bleeding, sequestration), the renal loss (diuretics, nephritis with the salt loss, osmotical diuresis, the Addison disease), hypothyroidism, the lack of glucocorticoids, emotional stress, pain, pseudohyponatremia (incorrect taking, dyslipoproteinemia). There is fatigue, exhaustion, headache and vertigoes dominating in the clinical record file. By the deficit increasing a patient becomes delirious, comatose even with the shock development. It is necessary to separate sufficient supply of sodium from much more often reason, which is loss of sodium which can be caused by: excessive sweating, vomitting with the metabolical alkalosis development, diarrhoea with the metabolical acidosis development, renal losses (a phase of renal failure). Treatment of hyponatremia: intensive treatment starts at the level of plasmatic concentration of sodium under 120 mmol/l or when neurological symptoms of brain oedema are present. In the therapy it is necessary to avoid fast infusions of hypertonic saline solutions (3-5% NaCl solutions) because of the danger of the development of serious CNS complications (intracranial bleeding, etc.). It is recommended to adjust the plasmatic concentration of sodium up to 120 mmol/l during the first four hours and a subsequent correction should not be higher than 2 mmol per an hour. Treatment of the basic illness is very important. We present 2 case histories: a 74-year old female patient and a 69-year old female patient both with the hyponatremia caused by taking of carbamazepine. We want to inform and warn about not only a well known side effect during long-term treatment but about hyponatremia that arose within 48 hours after the start of taking medicine as well.

[Morbus Ormond (idiopatic retroperitoneal fibrosis)]. / Ormondova choroba (idiopatická retroperitoneálna fibróza).

Idiopathic retroperitoneal fibrosis (IRF) is a rare condition characterized by the development of fibrotic tissue around the abdominal aorta and iliac arteries and often involves structures as ureters and the inferior vena cava. The age at onset of signs and symptoms is between 40-60 years, males predominane over females. In most cases the clinical manifestation is presented as compressive syndrom of ureters, therefore the first known cases were described by urologists. In this report we present the case of 37-years old male examinated for persistent fever about 38 degrees C and high inflammatory activity in spite of empiric antibiotic therapy. Positron emission tomography (PET) showed locality of high metabolic activity of fluorodeoxyglucose with maximum paraaortal left. Microscopic examination of extracted mass showed presence of fibrous and inflammatory components. With clinical presentation, imaging and histological findings we made out the diagnosis of idiopathic retroperitoneal fibrosis--morbus Ormond.