[Amyloidosis in children with rheumatoid arthritis and the results of its long-term treatment with colchicine]. / Amiloidoz u detei, bol'nykh revmatoidnym artritom, i rezul'taty dlitel'nogo ego lecheniia kolkhitsinom.

The authors provide materials of a clinical follow-up of 23 children suffering from rheumatoid arthritis (RA) with an outcome of amyloidosis of the internal organs, supported by morphological examination in 13 patients. 10 patients were treated with colchicine in a dose of 1-2 mg/day lasting from 6 months to 2 years and 7 months. The beneficial effect was attained in 7 children. In 3 patients with RA standing over 8 years, the results were negative. Colchicine merits attention as an effective drug for the treatment of secondary amyloidosis in RA patients.

[The role of circulating immune complexes in children with rheumatoid arthritis]. / Rol' tsirkuliruiushchikh immunnykh kompleksov u detei s revmatoidnym artritom.

The content of circulating immune complexes (CIC) was determined in 120 children with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Of this number 24 children were included into the group with rheumatoid uveitis. For comparison a group of 33 children with arthritis of various genesis was examined. Determination of CIC showed that in RA children exhibited a high level of IC in the blood and the synovial fluid depending on the activity of the process, the presence of visceral manifestations and spread of the articular affection. Rheumatoid uveitis was not accompanied by any marked deviations in immunological indices as compared to an articular form of rheumatoid arthritis. An increased content of CIC in children with arthritis of various genesis allows one to consider that in rheumatoid arthritis its determination is of no diagnostic value though a considerable rise in their content is a prognostically unfavourable sign in this disease.

[Analysis of distribution of histocompatibility antigens class I and II in children with rheumatoid arthritis]. / Analiz raspredeleniia antigenov I i II klassov sistemy HLA u detei s revmatoidnym artritom.

The authors studied distribution of antigens HLA A, B, C in 115 children and of antigens HLA DR in 102 children of the Russian nationality with classic or diagnosed juvenile rheumatoid arthritis (JRA). A rise in the frequency of antigens B21, B27 and DR3 was noted as compared to the control values. Then distribution of HLA-antigens was analysed in separate groups of patients depending on the nature of the clinical course of JRA. It was characteristic of patients of patients depending on the nature of the clinical course of JRA. It was characteristic of patients with mono-oligoarthritis with an polyarticular form of JRA to exhibit a rise in the frequency of antigens B27 and DRW8, with uveitis--of antigens A2, B27 and DRW8, with a high degree of activity of the inflammatory process--B21, with an allergic variant--B21, with an articulovisceral form--B21, DR3 and DR4, with Still's disease--DR3, rheumatoid nodes--DR2 and DR3. Thus, specificity of associations was determined in most of the cases by the nature of JRA clinical course. The authors confirm the number of associations previously described in the literature abroad.