Rituximab administration during the second trimester of pregnancy for systemic lupus erythematosus: Case report and review of the literature on rheumatic disease.

Rituximab (RTX) is an anti-CD20 monoclonal antibody that is used in the treatment of many rheumatic diseases, for both licensed and unlicensed indications. Due to concerns regarding foetal B cell depletion and possible infection, there is conflicting advice about whether the drug should be administered during pregnancy, with some organisations advising administration if the potential benefit to the mother outweighs the risk to the foetus and some advising stopping RTX 6 months prior to conception. Caution in particular is advised about administering RTX in later trimesters when maternal immunoglobulin G (IgG) is transported across the placenta. There have been few literatures thus far examining the safety of administering RTX from the second trimester onwards in rheumatic diseases. We present a case where RTX was used during the second trimester for the treatment of refractory systemic lupus erythematosus, without adverse effect on the neonate.

Liver diseases in pregnancy.

Liver disease in pregnancy can be related to a pre-existing condition (such as autoimmune liver disease) or arise as a consequence of pregnancy. In women with pre-existing disease, pre-pregnancy counselling is important to discuss the potential complications that may occur during pregnancy and how best to manage these. Acute fatty liver of pregnancy and HELLP (haemolysis, elevated liver enzymes and low platelets) syndrome are pregnancy-related liver diseases and are considered obstetric emergencies. Women with liver dysfunction need appropriate investigations, including blood tests and imaging. They should be managed as part of a multidisciplinary team with obstetricians, obstetric anaesthetists, specialist midwives, gastroenterologists and obstetric physicians.

A case of enteropathic arthritis complicated by superimposed bilateral septic arthritis of the hips.

Polyarticular septic arthritis is an underappreciated clinical entity. Pre-existing joint diseases, such as osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis have been shown to be risk factors for septic arthritis. However, there is a paucity of data in the literature regarding the risk of septic arthritis in those patients with enteropathic arthritis. Here, we describe the case of a 47-year-old female with a background history of ulcerative colitis who presented with difficulty mobilising and pain in the hips associated with lethargy, fever and a significant inflammatory response. After an investigative process, she was newly diagnosed with enteropathic arthritis, complicated at presentation, by bilateral septic arthritis of the hips, based on progressive radiological destruction and a joint aspirate that grew Staphylococcus aureus. After treatment with antibiotics and steroids, her pain and mobility significantly improved, and she was discharged with a plan for an elective hip replacement and to commence disease-modifying therapy with sulfasalazine. This case reminds us that we must have a high index of suspicion to diagnose septic arthritis in those who present feverish and unwell with joint pain, even in those who present with multiple joint involvement. Furthermore, it describes a rare occurrence of bilateral septic arthritis of the hips occurring in a patient with enteropathic arthritis, which unlike osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis, is not well described in the literature as a risk factor for septic arthritis.

A Closer Look at the Role of Anti-CCP Antibodies in the Pathogenesis of Rheumatoid Arthritis-Associated Interstitial Lung Disease and Bronchiectasis.

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is an articular disease with extra-articular manifestations. Pulmonary manifestations are not uncommon and can involve all compartments of the lungs with airway disease in the form of bronchiectasis or bronchiolitis, interstitial lung disease (ILD), pleural effusions and parenchymal lung nodules. The pulmonary features may present synchronously or after the articular disease, but, importantly, it may be the first presentation in 10% of patients in the absence of articular symptoms. Here we discuss the pathogenesis of RA lung involvement, particularly interstitial lung disease and bronchiectasis, focusing on the role anti-CCP antibodies (ACPAs). We highlight the complex interplay among genetic, environmental and immune factors. Furthermore, we explore the relationship of citrullination and smoking as well as the concept of interstitial pneumonia with autoimmune features (IPAF), where patients do not have evidence of another known cause of interstitial pneumonia and have incomplete features of connective tissue disease (CTD). We surmise that the frequency and titers of rheumatoid factor (RF) and ACPAs are increased in bronchiectasis and RA-bronchiectasis compared to RA patients without lung disease. ACPA is associated with more severe disease in both RA-ILD and RA-bronchiectasis even in the absence of articular symptoms. There is no clear prediction of development of articular RA with high ACPA levels in the context of positive ACPA and ILD; however, in RA-bronchiectasis, patients with positive antibodies can develop RA within a year after diagnosis of bronchiectasis. Though the primary focus of this narrative is to highlight the role of ACPA in pathogenesis and clinical practice, we also discuss the current treatment options and trials in RA-ILD and RA-bronchiectasis. Currently, there are no clear treatment guidelines. The treatments are now focusing on using a combination of immunosuppression and antifibrotic agents. Combination treatment targets both the fibrotic and inflammatory components of the disease process. Further studies are needed to identify the use of ACPA as a biomarker to tailor the treatment in RA-ILD and RA-bronchiectasis.

Postnatal Care of Woman with Rheumatic Diseases.

Caring for women in the postnatal period can be challenging. One of the most important aspects is ensuring disease control as there is a risk of flare in the postpartum period. Other aspects of care also need to be addressed with the mother in mind such as breastfeeding or with the neonate in mind such as vaccinations or complications of the maternal condition affecting the neonate. This article highlights aspects of care that need to be addressed in the postpartum period such as flare rates, maternal wellbeing, thromboembolism, vaccinations, contraception and breast feeding.

Safety of anti-rheumatic drugs in men trying to conceive: A systematic review and analysis of published evidence.

There is limited evidence relating to the impact of disease modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs) upon male fertility and peri-conception paternal exposure in men with rheumatic disease. Therefore, we conducted a systematic review of available evidence to update information on this subject and guide paternal counselling. A systematic search of PubMed and Embase was carried out up to September 2017, to find relevant peer-reviewed papers, using keywords for fertility/spermatogenesis/conception, men, and disease modifying or biologic drugs commonly prescribed in patients with rheumatic disease. The search yielded 724 papers, and the titles/abstracts were screened independently by 2 authors, duplicates removed and 233 potentially relevant papers selected for full text review. A total of 84 papers were included in the final analysis which covered the impact on fertility of over 611 male exposures to relevant drugs, and over 5986 pregnancies conceived during paternal exposure to (or within 3 months of stopping) these drugs. Aside from the known adverse impact of cyclophosphamide and sulfasalazine on spermatogenesis, overall there was no firm evidence of harm to fertility or pregnancy outcomes with paternal exposure to anti-TNF therapies, abatacept, rituximab, azathioprine, cyclosporine A, hydroxychloroquine, leflunomide, methotrexate or mycophenolate mofetil. There was no evidence found pertaining to the effects of male exposure to IVIG, tacrolimus, golimumab, anakinra or belimumab on fertility or pregnancy outcomes. These results provide further reassurance as to the safety of many DMARDs for men trying to conceive and will be useful when counselling men about risks of anti-rheumatic drugs to fertility and pregnancies, and following accidental conception.

Ultrasound-detected subclinical inflammation was better reflected by the disease activity score (DAS-28) in patients with suspicion of inflammatory arthritis compared to established rheumatoid arthritis.

Limited data are available about the ultrasound (US)-detected inflammatory features in patients with suspicion of inflammatory arthritis (S-IA) vs. established rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Our study aimed to assess if the presence of power Doppler (PD) can be predicted by a combination of clinical, laboratory and US parameters. We conducted a real-life, retrospective cohort study comparing clinical, laboratory and US parameters of 108 patients with established RA and 93 patients with S-IA. We propose a PD signal prediction model based on a beta-binomial distribution for PD variable using a mix of outcome measures. Patients with RA in clinical remission had significantly more active inflammation and erosions on US when compared with patients with S-IA with similar disease scores (p = 0.03 and p = 0.01, respectively); however, RA patients with different disease activity score (DAS-28) scores had similar PD scores (p = 0.058). The PD scores did not correlate with erosions (p = 0.38) or DAS-28 scores (p = 0.28) in RA patients, but they correlated with high disease activity in S-IA patients (p = 0.048). Subclinical inflammation is more common in patients with RA in clinical remission or with low disease activity than in patients with S-IA; therefore, US was more useful in assessing for true remission in RA rather than diagnosing IA in patients with low disease activity scores. This is the first study to propose a PD prediction model integrating several outcome measures in the two different groups of patients. Further research into validating this model can minimise the risk of underdiagnosing subclinical inflammation.

Teriparatide: an unexpected adjunct for the treatment of a long-standing infected elbow prosthesis prevented arm amputation.

A 76-year-old woman with rheumatoid arthritis, osteoporosis and multiple comorbidities presented with septic left elbow prosthesis. Treatment included combination antibiotic therapy and removal of the prosthesis. Weeks later she was started on teriparatide. Her elbow symptoms resolved. In our experience, this is the first case in the literature reporting teriparatide efficacy in the treatment of septic arthritis.

Abnormal antibodies: what do you do?

Systemic autoimmune rheumatic diseases encompass a vast array of autoantibodies which are very useful to confirm a suspected diagnosis. This article gives an overview of the most common autoantibodies, how they are tested and the significance of a positive test in a clinical context.