[Three cases of bullous lupus erythematosus]. / Étude de trois cas de lupus érythémateux bulleux.

BACKGROUND: Bullous lupus is a subepidermal autoimmune bullous dermatosis, a rare entity that forms one of the cutaneous signs of systemic lupus erythematosus. We report on the clinical, immunopathological and progressive features of bullous lupus in three patients. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Our patients consisted of two women and one man aged 34, 22 and 30 years respectively. A diagnosis of bullous lupus erythematosus was evoked by blisters or vesicular blisters and confirmed, in addition to criteria for the diagnosis of systemic lupus erythematosus, by the presence of subepidermal blistering with infiltrate containing neutrophils and eosinophils as revealed by histological analysis, and of deposits of IgG and IgM (two cases) or of IgA (one case) at the dermo-epidermal junction observed under direct immunofluorescence. Indirect immunofluorescence showed anti-collagen VII antibodies. Lupus nephritis was present in two cases. Our patients were treated with corticosteroids and immunosuppressants. CONCLUSION: Bullous lupus erythematosus may be the first sign of systemic lupus erythematosus with severe visceral involvement, especially renal involvement, suggesting that it may be a marker of activity and prognosis.

[Ocular involvement in polyarteritis nodosa: two cases]. / Atteinte oculaire au cours de la périartérite noueuse. Deux observations.

INTRODUCTION: Polyarteritis nodosa (PAN) is a systemic vasculitis with polymorphic manifestations. Ocular involvement is rare; we report two such cases. CASES: The first case was a 56-year-old man with PAN treated with corticosteroids. A year and a half later, during a disease outbreak associated with decreased visual acuity, ocular examination objectified a localized pigment epithelial detachment in the right eye. The outcome was favorable with corticoid bolus followed by azathioprine. The second case was a 41-year-old man presenting with PAN and decreased visual acuity. Ophthalmologic examination showed inferotemporal branch vein occlusion in the right eye with serous retinal detachments in the left eye. The outcome was favorable with intravenous cyclophosphamide followed by azathioprine. DISCUSSION: The incidence of ocular involvement in PAN varies from 10 to 20%. It is most often associated with vasculitis of retinal and choroidal arteries. Fluorescein angiography is the gold standard of diagnosis. Multifocal acute ischemia of the choriocapillaris is very pathognomonic. Immunosuppressant drugs are effective and should be reserved for severe forms.

[Haemophagocytic syndrome as a complication of acute pancreatitis during systemic lupus erythematosus]. / Syndrome hémophagocytaire compliquant une pancréatite aiguë dans le cadre d'un lupus érythémateux systémique.

BACKGROUND: Acute pancreatitis and haemophagocytic syndrome (HS) are rarely seen in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). PATIENTS AND METHODS: We report the case of a young female patient without any noteworthy prior history, who was hospitalised for abdominal pain associated with acute pancreatitis possibly related to SLE with associated haemophagocytic syndrome. DISCUSSION: Screening for cutaneous symptoms of lupus in patients with pancreatitis can help avoid diagnostic errors.

[Carbimazole can be the cause of iron deficiency anemia?]. / Le carbimazole peut-il être à l'origine d'une anémie férriprive ?

Iron deficiency anemia as a hematologic complication of the antithyroid medication (ATS) that has not been already described in the literature. We report on two exceptional cases: the first case concerns a 24 years old man admitted for an anemic syndrome. He was treated with carbimazole for Graves' disease. The blood count showed a non-regenerative microcytic anemia. Serum ferritin was severely decreased. The etiologic searching for bleeding, hemolysis, malabsorption or iron deficiency was negative. Treatment with iron salts was introduced without any real improvement. Given this situation, and given the negativity of the etiologic investigations, the decision to stop carbimazole was taken. Since that, the clinical and biological evolutions have been favorable. The second observation is much more original and concerns a 35 years old woman. The clinical, laboratory, etiological and treatment data are similar to those of the first observation. The evolution after withdrawal of carbimazole was favorable. The originality of this observation is that a reintroduction test of carbimazole was performed and allowed to reproduce the same haematological effects. These findings led us to hold the diagnosis of anaemia due to carbimazole. In this occasion, and in the light of the data in the literature, we underline the exceptional character of these two cases and we raise the possibility of an etiopathogenic link between administration of ATS and the occurrence of anaemia by iron deficiency.

[Ulcerative colitis: exceptional consequence after rituximab therapy]. / La colite ulcérative : une conséquence exceptionnelle après traitement par rituximab.

INTRODUCTION: Possible adverse complications related to rituximab (RTX) are low, some of which are extremely rare. The authors describe one situation visibly waning exceptional treatment with RTX for SLE refractory to conventional therapies. COMMENT: The authors report a patient of 34 years followed for months for an illness in its bullous lupus, with cutaneous, articular, hematologic and immunologic. Given a corticosteroid resistance, several therapeutic background based hydroxychloroquine, cyclophosphamide and methotrexate, were initiated without any improvement. Immunomodulatory therapy type RTX was introduced to this form refractory at a rate of 375mg/m(2)/week. The waning of the second infusion, the patient presented a sudden intense abdominal pain syndrome, revealing an acute catarrhal appendicitis. At distance from the appendectomy, the consequences of which were favorable, treatment with RTX was resumed. In the aftermath of the third infusion, the patient presented in table tract marked by profuse watery diarrhea whose explorations reveal a morphological endoscopic appearance of erythematous, ulcerative colitis, reversible upon discontinuation of treatment. Histological data revealed important infiltrates composed mainly of CD8T lymphocytes. CONCLUSION: Gastrointestinal immunological consequences to the requirements of the targeted therapies deserved very careful and rigorous monitoring. However, at the slightest sign of digestive, a detailed morphological exploration is essential, to avoid in particular surgical emergency, evolution without treatment could engage in short-term vital prognosis.

[Durable efficacity and remission after treatment with imatinib mesylate for FIP1L1-PDGFRA transcript negative associated eosinophilic cardiomyopathy]. / Efficacité et rémission durables après traitement par imatinib mésylate pour une cardiomyopathie éosinophilique à transcrit FIP1L1-PDGFRA négatif.

INTRODUCTION: The cardiac involvement in hypereosinophilia remains a major cause of morbidity and mortality. Recent advances have identified new molecular mechanisms responsible for the expansion of the eosinophilic lineage, allowing a better classification of the different forms of Hypereosinophilic syndrome (HES) and especially targeted therapy. Since the discovery of the involvement of deregulated tyrosine kinases in the pathophysiology of these diseases, and particularly the identification of the fusion gene FIP1L1-PDGFRA, new molecules inhibiting specifically this signaling pathway (imatinib) were individualized, leading to dramatic therapeutic benefits in proliferative forms of HES considered before that of very poor prognosis. CASE REPORT: We report here the dramatic effectiveness of imatinib used as second line therapy for dilated cardiomyopathy revealing a hypereosinophilic syndrome in a patient in whom the search for FIP1-L1-PDGFRA fusion gene was negative. CONCLUSION: If hypereosinophilia has varied clinical and morphological outcome, its clinical consequences, particularly on heart function, are sometimes dreadful, and are not correlated either with blood eosinophil levels or with a specific etiology. We report here a case of HES lacking the FIP1-L1-PDGFRA fusion gene showing that despite the absence of this molecular defect, imatinib mesylate may have therapeutic interest in those cases of HES resistant to first line therapies.

[Efficacity of rituximab in hemolytic anemia with cold autoantibodies case]. / Efficacité exemplaire du rituximab dans un cas d'anémie hémolytique à autoanticorps froids.

INTRODUCTION: Autoimmune hemolytic anemia with cold autoantibodies or cold agglutinin disease is a rare chronic disorder in which no treatment has, until now, evidence of its effectiveness. CLINICAL CASE: We report a patient who successfully responded to rituximab for a cold agglutinin disease refractory to conventional therapy with very good tolerance and a complete remission. CONCLUSION: There are only few observations that have been reported in the literature regarding the efficacity of rituximab in the treatment of cold agglutinin disease. This promising therapy could, in the future, constitute a real alternative.