Efficacy and Safety of Interferon-Gamma in Chronic Granulomatous Disease: a Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Chronic granulomatous disease (CGD) is a primary immunodeficiency with increased susceptibility to several bacteria, fungi, and mycobacteria, caused by defective or null superoxide production by the NADPH oxidase enzymatic complex. Accepted treatment consists mainly of antimicrobial prophylaxis. The role of human recombinant subcutaneous interferon-gamma (IFNγ) is less clear since the available evidence on its efficacy derives mainly from a single clinical trial that has been challenged. OBJECTIVE: We aimed to assess the efficacy and safety of IFNγ as an added treatment for CGD when compared to antimicrobial prophylaxis alone. METHODS: A literature search was conducted using MeSH terms "Chronic granulomatous disease" AND ("interferon gamma" OR "interferon-gamma"), as well as antibiotics, placebo, no therapy, clinical trial, and trial, on MEDLINE, EMBASE, LILACS, WHOs, CENTRAL, KOREAMED, The Cochrane Library, clinicaltrials.gov, and abstracts from meetings, from 1976 to July 2022. We included clinical trials (CT) and prospective follow-up studies and registered the number of serious infections (requiring hospitalization and IV antibiotics) and deaths, adverse events, and autoimmune complications, in patients treated for CGD with antimicrobial prophylaxis plus IFN-γ, versus antimicrobial prophylaxis alone. We assessed the quality of the studies using risk of bias and STROBE. We performed a meta-analysis by calculating both Peto's odds ratio (OR) and risk reduction (RR) through the Mantel-Haenszel method with a fixed-effect model, using Review Manager 5.4, and we reported the number needed to treat (NNT). RESULTS: We identified 54 matches from databases and 4 from other sources. We excluded 12 duplicates, 7 titles, and 9 abstracts for relevance, after which we had 30 eligible studies. Twenty-four were then excluded after reading the full text. Six papers were included: one randomized CT and 5 follow-up studies. In total, 324 patients with Chronic granulomatous disease were followed for 319 months under treatment with antibiotic prophylaxis plus interferon-gamma or placebo (or antibiotic prophylaxis alone), reported between the years 1991 and 2016. Three of the studies included a control group, allowing for the aggregate analysis of efficacy (prevention of serious infections). The aggregate OR was 0.49, with a 95% confidence interval of 0.19 to 1.23. The risk ratio for serious infection was 0.56 (95%CI 0.35-0.90) under IFN-γ. The meta-analysis thus favors interferon-gamma for a risk reduction of serious infection. DISCUSSION: The results from this meta-analysis support the use of IFN-γ in the treatment of patients with CGD. However, we found insufficient clinical evidence and believe more clinical trials are needed to better assess the efficacy and long-term safety of IFN-γ.

Severe congenital neutropenia due to G6PC3 deficiency: Case series of five patients and literature review.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Glucose-6-phosphate catalytic subunit 3 (G6PC3) deficiency is characterized by severe congenital neutropenia with recurrent pyogenic infections, a prominent superficial venous pattern and cardiovascular and urogenital malformations caused by an alteration of glucose homeostasis, with increased endoplasmic reticulum stress and cell apoptosis. METHODS: We reviewed our patients with G6PC3 deficiency diagnosed along the last decade in Mexico; we also searched the PubMed/Medline database for the terms ('G6PC3 deficiency' OR 'Dursun syndrome' OR 'Severe congenital neutropenia type 4'), and selected articles published in English from 2009 to 2020. RESULTS: We found 89 patients reported from at least 14 countries in 4 continents. We describe five new cases from Mexico. Of the 94 patients, 56% are male, 48% from Middle East countries and none of them had adverse reactions to live vaccines; all presented with at least 1 severe infection prior to age 2. Seventy-five per cent had syndromic features, mainly atrial septal defect in 55% and prominent superficial veins in 62%. CONCLUSIONS: With a total of 94 patients reported in the past decade, we delineate the most frequent laboratory and genetic features, their treatment and outcomes, and to expand the knowledge of syndromic and non-syndromic phenotypes in these patients.

Genetic, Immunological, and Clinical Features of the First Mexican Cohort of Patients with Chronic Granulomatous Disease.

PURPOSE: Chronic granulomatous disease (CGD) is a primary immunodeficiency characterized by an inability of phagocytes to produce reactive oxygen species, impairing their killing of various bacteria and fungi. We summarize here the 93 cases of CGD diagnosed in Mexico from 2011 to 2019. METHODS: Thirteen Mexican hospitals participated in this study. We describe the genetic, immunological, and clinical features of the 93 CGD patients from 78 unrelated kindreds. RESULTS: Eighty-two of the patients (88%) were male. All patients developed bacterial infections and 30% suffered from some kind of fungal infection. Fifty-four BCG-vaccinated patients (58%) presented infectious complications of BCG vaccine. Tuberculosis occurred in 29%. Granulomas were found in 56% of the patients. Autoimmune and inflammatory diseases were present in 15% of patients. A biological diagnosis of CGD was made in 89/93 patients, on the basis of NBT assay (n = 6), DHR (n = 27), and NBT plus DHR (n = 56). The deficiency was complete in all patients. The median age of biological diagnosis was 17 months (range, 0-186 months). A genetic diagnosis was made in 83/93 patients (when material was available), corresponding to CYBB (n = 64), NCF1 (n = 7), NCF2 (n = 7), and CYBA (n = 5) mutations. CONCLUSIONS: The clinical manifestations in these Mexican CGD patients were similar to those in patients elsewhere. This cohort is the largest in Latin America. Mycobacterial infections are an important cause of morbidity in Mexico, as in other countries in which tuberculosis is endemic and infants are vaccinated with BCG. X-linked CGD accounted for most of the cases in Mexico, as in other Latin American countries. However, a significant number of CYBA and NCF2 mutations were identified, expanding the spectrum of known causal mutations.

Latin American consensus on the supportive management of patients with severe combined immunodeficiency.

Severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID) represents the most lethal form of primary immunodeficiency, with mortality rates of greater than 90% within the first year of life without treatment. Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation and gene therapy are the only curative treatments available, and the best-known prognostic factors for success are age at diagnosis, age at hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, and the comorbidities that develop in between. There are no evidence-based guidelines for standardized clinical care for patients with SCID during the time between diagnosis and definitive treatment, and we aim to generate a consensus management strategy on the supportive care of patients with SCID. First, we gathered available information about SCID diagnostic and therapeutic guidelines, then we developed a document including diagnostic and therapeutic interventions, and finally we submitted the interventions for expert consensus through a modified Delphi technique. Interventions are grouped in 10 topic domains, including 123 "agreed" and 38 "nonagreed" statements. This document intends to standardize supportive clinical care of patients with SCID from diagnosis to definitive treatment, reduce disease burden, and ultimately improve prognosis, particularly in countries where newborn screening for SCID is not universally available and delayed diagnosis is the rule. Our work intends to provide a tool not only for immunologists but also for primary care physicians and other specialists involved in the care of patients with SCID.

Primary Immunodeficiency Diseases in Aguascalientes, Mexico: Results from an Educational Program.

PURPOSE: Primary immunodeficiencies (PIDs) are a heterogeneous group of disorders characterized mainly by recurrent infections. Late diagnosis remains as one of the main issues to solve. We aimed to increase PID diagnosis in Aguascalientes, a 1.3 million inhabitants state in the center of Mexico, and to describe the clinical features of such patients. METHODS: We developed an educational program for health personnel and general public; patients with possible PID were referred to a State University clinical center from December 2011 to December 2012. The patients were evaluated at the clinic and their definitive diagnosis pursued through laboratory, molecular and genetic assays. We describe the findings of those patients and analyze the impact of the program in terms of number of referrals. RESULTS: After 41 talks and 12 media appearances 151 patients were referred for evaluation. Fifteen (9.9%) were diagnosed with PID: five (33%) had antibody deficiencies, seven (47%) Well-defined syndromes, two (13%) Severe combined Immunodeficiency (SCID) and one case (7%) of an innate immune deficiency. All of the 15 PID patients had been referred by physicians, as opposed to the public. We estimated a "number needed to teach" of 75 physicians to get one PID patient referral. CONCLUSION: Educational programs are a fundamental part of the global efforts to increase PID diagnosis and care. To be successful, such programs should include public relations, reach for first-contact physicians, and aim to develop an efficient referral network with molecular diagnostic capability. Enhancing medical knowledge on PID is a successful strategy to improve early diagnosis and treatment.

[Feeling analysis on allergen immunotherapy on Twitter using an unsupervised machine learning model]. / Análisis de sentimientos acerca de la inmunoterapia con alérgenos en Twitter mediante un modelo de aprendizaje automático no supervisado.

OBJECTIVE: Analyze feelings about allergen-specific immunotherapy on Twitter using the VADER model VADER (Valence Aware Dictionary and sEntiment Reasoner) model. METHODS: tweets related to specific allergen immunotherapy were obtained through the Twitter Application Programming Interface (API). The keywords "allergy shot" were used between January 1, 2012, and December 31, 2022. The data was processed by removing URLs, usernames, hashtags, multiple spaces, and duplicate tweets. Subsequently, a sentiment analysis was performed using the VADER model. RESULTS: A total of 34,711 tweets were retrieved, of which 1928 were eliminated. Of the remaining 32,783 tweets, 32.41% expressed a negative sentiment, 31.11% expressed a neutral sentiment, and 36.47% expressed a positive sentiment, with an average polarity of 0.02751 (neutral) over the 11-year period. CONCLUSIONS: The average polarity of tweets about allergen-specific immunotherapy is neutral over the 11 years analyzed. There was an annual increase in the average polarity over the years, with 2017, 2018, and 2022 having positive polarity averages. Additionally, the number of tweets decreased over time.

OBJETIVO: Analizar los sentimientos acerca de la inmunoterapia alérgeno-específica en Twitter mediante el modelo VADER (Valence Aware Dictionary and sEntiment Reasoner). MÉTODOS: Se utilizaron tweets relacionados con la inmunoterapia alérgeno-específica obtenidos a través del API (Application Programming Interface) de Twitter. Se incorporaron las palabras clave "allergy shot" en el período comprendido entre el 1 de enero de 2012 y el 31 de diciembre de 2022. Los datos obtenidos fueron procesados, eliminando las URL, nombres de usuarios, hashtags, espacios múltiples y tweets duplicados. Posteriormente, se realizó un análisis de sentimientos utilizando el modelo VADER. RESULTADOS: Se recolectaron 34,711 tweets, de los que se eliminaron 1928. De los 32,783 tweets restantes, se encontró que el 32.41% de los usuarios expresó un sentimiento negativo, el 31.11% un sentimiento neutral y el 36.47% un sentimiento positivo, con una media de polaridad de 0.02751 (neutral) a lo largo de los 11 años. CONCLUSIONES: La polaridad media de los tweets acerca de la inmunoterapia alérgeno-específica es neutral a lo largo de los 11 años analizados. Existe un aumento anual en la polaridad media positiva a lo largo de los años, sobre todo entre 2017, 2018 y 2022. La cantidad de tweets disminuyó con el tiempo.

Sentiment analysis of subcutaneous and intravenous immunoglobulin therapy: public healthcare perception through social media discourse.

Purpose: Immunoglobulin replacement therapy remains a cornerstone of treatment in antibody deficiencies and other inborn errors of immunity. While patient preferences between subcutaneous and intravenous immunoglobulin have been studied through questionnaires, no study has yet explored patient perspectives in a free environment. Therefore, we aimed to conduct a sentiment analysis as well as a temporal and geographical analysis on public opinions obtained from social media to better understand patient satisfaction and public perception on immunoglobulin therapy. Methods: A dataset of 43,700 tweets spanning from the 1st of January of 2012 to the 31st of December of 2022 was obtained. A Valence Aware Dictionary for Sentiment Reasoning sentiment analysis was performed, followed by statistical, geographical and temporal analyses. Results: Mean polarity of intravenous immunoglobulin related tweets was 0.1295 (positive), while mean polarity for subcutaneous immunoglobulin was 0.2117 (positive). Temporal analysis through a statistical model demonstrated that the volume of tweets increased over time for both subcutaneous and intravenous treatment. Geographical analysis revealed that the majority of texts originated from the United States. The highest mean polarity was observed in Romania with a mean value of 0.2966, while the lowest polarity was documented in Norway with a mean of -0.0211. Conclusion: Tweets linked to subcutaneous immunoglobulin treatment had a higher average polarity, indicating a more positive public perception. The amount of tweets relating to both therapies showed a tendency to increase as the years progressed, implying an increase in public discussion on immunoglobulin treatment.

Intravenous immunoglobulin treatment for macrophage activation syndrome complicating chronic granulomatous disease.

OBJECTIVES: Chronic granulomatous disease is a rare phagocyte disorder characterized by an increased susceptibility to infections and inflammatory complications. We describe two patients with chronic granulomatous disease (CGD) complicated by macrophage activation syndrome (MAS) (secondary hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis) treated with intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG). METHODS: A report of two cases of CGD complicated by MAS who were successfully treated with IVIG was made, and a comparison was made with ten other cases reported in the literature. RESULTS: MAS is a severe potentially fatal complication of CGD. Most cases are associated with Burkholderia cepacia and leishmaniasis infection. The treatment of these patients varies between centers, and one example is the use of the HLH-2004 protocol. IVIG could be an effective first line option for this complication in CGD patients. CONCLUSIONS: The exaggerated inflammatory response characteristic of CGD patients could play a role in the development of this complication. IVIG appears to be a safe and effective first line treatment in these patients.

[Sensitization to aeroallergens in patients with allergic rhinitis in Aguascalientes, Mexico]. / Sensibilización a aeroalérgenos en pacientes con rinitis alérgica en Aguascalientes, México.

BACKGROUND: Allergic rhinitis is the most common allergic disease worldwide and it is caused by a reaction of hypersensitivity to aeroallergens. To our knowledge, there aren't any previous studies of aeroallergenic sensitization in Aguascalientes, Mexico. OBJECTIVE: To describe the sensitization to aeroallergens in patients with allergic rhinitis who have been treated at a private clinic in Aguascalientes, Mexico. METHODS: A descriptive, cross-sectional and retrospective study was done in which patients diagnosed with allergic rhinitis were included. Skin prick tests with 32 allergenic extracts were carried out and the frequencies at each were determined. RESULTS: In total, 350 patients were analyzed. The most frequent aeroallergens were grass pollens (74.8%), followed by tree pollens (64.8%) and dust mites Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus (64%). The group of patients under 20 years of age was predominant (67.1%), followed by the group of 21 to 40 years old (22.5%). CONCLUSIONS: This research provides information about regional patterns of sensitization, which shall facilitate diagnostic tests in the region and the best practices of specific immunotherapy.

Antecedentes: La rinitis alérgica es la enfermedad alérgica más común en el mundo y es causada por hipersensibilidad a los aeroalérgenos. Hasta donde sabemos, no hay estudios previos de sensibilización aeroalergénica en Aguascalientes, México. Objetivo: Describir la sensibilización a aeroalérgenos en pacientes con rinitis alérgica tratados en una clínica privada en Aguascalientes, México. Métodos: Estudio descriptivo, transversal y retrospectivo; se incluyeron pacientes diagnosticados con rinitis alérgica. Se realizaron pruebas cutáneas con 32 extractos alergénicos y se determinaron las frecuencia de reacción a cada uno. Resultados: En total se analizaron 350 pacientes. Los aeroalérgenos más frecuentes fueron los pólenes de pastos (74.8%), seguidos por los pólenes de árboles (64.8%) y Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus (64%). El grupo de edad predominante fue el menor de 20 años (67.1%), seguido del grupo de 21 a 40 años (22.5%). Conclusión: La investigación proporciona información sobre los patrones regionales de sensibilización, que facilitará las pruebas de diagnóstico en la región y las mejores prácticas de inmunoterapia específica.

[Autoimmune lymphoproliferative syndrome. Update and review]. / Síndrome linfoproliferativo autoinmune. Actualización y revisión.

The autoimmune lymphoproliferative syndrome (ALPS) is an inborn immunity error, which is the result of a heterogeneous group of mutations in the genes that regulate the apoptosis phenomenon. It typically appears in the first years of life. The most common clinical signs are lymphoid expansion with lymphadenopathy, splenomegaly, and hepatomegaly; immune disease with different types of cytopenia, including thrombocytopenia, hemolytic anemia, and lymphoma. The lab abnormalities that facilitate the diagnosis of ALPS include the presence of double negative alpha/beta T cells, high interleukin levels, vitamin B12 in the blood, and FAS-mediated defective apoptosis in the in vitro assay. The treatment of ALPS is focused on three aspects: The treatment of the manifestations of the disease, the prevention/treatment of complications, and the curative treatment (hematopoietic progenitor cell transplantation [HPCT]). The use of immunosuppressive therapy is suggested only for severe complications of lymphoproliferation or concomitant autoimmune manifestations. Splenectomy is not recommended for autoimmune manifestations in patients with ALPS. HPCT is reserved for selected patients. The survival rate to 50 years is estimated at 85% for patients with FAS deficiency.

El síndrome linfoproliferativo autoinmune (ALPS, autoimmune lymphoproliferative syndrome) es un error innato de la inmunidad, resultado de un grupo heterogéneo de alteraciones en los genes que regulan el fenómeno de apoptosis. Se manifiesta típicamente en los primeros años de vida. Las manifestaciones clínicas más comunes son la expansión linfoide con linfadenopatía, esplenomegalia y hepatomegalia, enfermedad autoinmune con citopenias, incluyendo trombocitopenia y anemia hemolítica, así como linfoma. Las anomalías de laboratorio que facilitan el diagnóstico de ALPS incluyen presencia de células alfa-beta T doble negativas, niveles elevados de interleucina 10, vitamina B12 en sangre y apoptosis defectuosa mediada por FAS en ensayo in vitro. El tratamiento de ALPS se centra en tres aspectos: el tratamiento de las manifestaciones de la enfermedad, la prevención y tratamiento de las complicaciones y el tratamiento curativo (trasplante de células progenitoras hematopoyéticas [TCPH]). Se sugiere el uso de tratamiento inmunosupresor solo para las complicaciones graves de la linfoproliferación o manifestaciones autoinmunes concomitantes. La esplenectomía no se recomienda para las manifestaciones autoinmunes en pacientes con ALPS. El TCPH se reserva para pacientes seleccionados. La tasa de supervivencia a 50 años se estima en 85 % para los pacientes con deficiencia de FAS.

[Etoposide desensitization. A case report]. / Desensibilización para etopósido. Comunicación de un caso.

All chemotherapeutic agents have the potential to induce hypersensitivity reactions and the repeated administration of such drugs during a cancer treatment enhances specific sensitization. Epipodophyllotoxins (etoposide and teniposide) are commonly used to treat lung, testicular, central nervous system and hematologic cancers. Hypersensitivity reactions to epipodophyllotoxins are not the most common but they have been reported. We present a case of an eight-year-old male patient, diagnosed with high risk acute lymphoblastic leukemia who received treatment with etoposide among other drugs (St. Jude XIIIB). During the first course of treatment he needed premedication to etoposide administration because of mild hypersensitivity reactions. At the beginning of a second treatment the patient presented two severe hypersensitivity reactions (acute urticaria, angioedema and hypotension) despite the use of premedication and slow infusion. We initiated a twelve steps desensitization protocol for etoposide with success in the second round allowing the administration of further doses in an ambulatory unit without hypersensitivity reactions.

[Chronic granulomatous disease]. / Enfermedad granulomatosa crónica.

Chronic granulomatous disease (CGD) is a primary immunodeficiency, a phagocyte defect that appears in 1:200,000 live births and is produced by mutations in the genes that codify for the enzyme nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate oxidase (NADPH oxidase). The inheritance form is X linked (> 60%) or autosomic recesive (30-40%). The NADPH oxidase is responsible for the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in the activated phagocyte ("respiratory burst"). When present, mutations on the NAPDH oxidase genes do not allow the ROS production, making the neutrophils of these patients incapable to destroy pathogens. These patients are especially susceptible to infections by staphylococcus, fungi and some gram-negative bacteria. The main clinical manifestations include recurrent life-threatening episodes of lymphadenitis, abscess, pneumonias, osteomyelitis, granuloma formation and sepsis. The diagnosis is suggested by a history of recurrent infections, familiar cases, fail to grow and confirmed with an altered test of ROS production and the specific mutation. Allogenic stem cells transplant is the curative treatment. The early diagnosis and the treatment with prophylactic antibiotics and interferon-gamma have modified favorably the morbidity and mortality of these patients.