Vasculitis resulting from a superficial femoral artery angioplasty with a paclitaxel-eluting balloon.

Drug-eluting balloons (DEBs) coated with the antiproliferative agent paclitaxel may improve primary patency by reducing recurrent luminal stenosis. A proportion of the active drug and excipient coating are known to embolize distally, but until now, there have been no reports of adverse events resulting from their use. We report an unusual case of a painful nodular, biopsy specimen-proven vasculitic rash that afflicted the ipsilateral lower limb of a patient after superficial femoral artery treatment with a DEB. This adverse event may have implications for the use of DEB in this and other vascular territories.

The place of immunotherapy in the management of HCV-induced vasculitis: an update.

Patients with chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) can develop systemic cryoglobulinemic vasculitis. Combination of pegylated-interferon α and ribavirin is the first-line treatment of this condition. However, in case of severe or life-threatening manifestations, absence of a virological response, or autonomized vasculitis, immunotherapy (alone or in addition to the antiviral regimen) is necessary. Rituximab is to date the only biologic with a sufficient level of evidence to support its use in this indication. Several studies have demonstrated that rituximab is highly effective when cryoglobulinaemic vasculitis is refractory to antiviral regimen, that association of rituximab with antiviral regimen may induce a better and faster clinical remission, and, recently, that rituximab is more efficient than traditional immunosuppressive treatments. Some issues with regard to the optimal dose of rituximab or its use as maintenance treatment remain unsolved. Interestingly, in balance with this anti-inflammatory strategy, a recent pilot study reported the significant expansion of circulating regulatory T lymphocytes with concomitant clinical improvement in patients with refractory HCV-induced cryoglobulinaemic vasculitis using low dose of subcutaneous interleukin-2. This paper provides an updated overview on the place of immunotherapy, especially biologics, in the management of HCV-induced cryoglobulinaemic vasculitis.

[Biomaterials and tissues material in the treatment of prosthetic grafts infections]. / Biomaterialy i material tkankowy w leczeniu zakazen protez naczyniowych.

An article is presented the treatment of vascular prosthetic grafts infections. An the graft infection treated by the replacement of infected prosthesis with autogenic venous material or with venous and arterial allograft harvested from brain-dead organ donors together with multiple organ procurement is presented. Autogenous material has an ability a better healing in infected tissues and used with absorbable sutures may lead to complete recovery from vascular graft infection - a severe and often lethal complication. An article is presented the treatment of vascular prosthetic grafts infections with the use of more resistant prostheses of infection - silver coated prosthesis, prosthesis with antibiotic and polytetrafluoroethylene prostheses.

Biochemical and clinical evaluation of a new cellulose diacetate secondary filter for cascade filtration.

We have performed 24 cascade filtration treatments in 8 patients with hyperviscosity syndrome (2 cases), essential mixed cryoglobulinemia, post-hepatitic cryoglobulinemia, Sjogrens disease, rheumatoid vasculitis, Miller-Fisher syndrome and chronic dysimmune polyneuropathy. New cellulose diacetate filters were employed, giving a satisfactory performance. At 1.5 L plasma treatment, the rejection rate for macromolecular plasma components was close to 90%, whereas albumin recovery was close to 70%. Treatments were clinically effective, confirming that cascade filtration is an alternative to conventional plasma exchange in patients with IgM or immune complex mediated diseases.

[Post-infectious systemic vasculitis: recovery without corticotherapy]. / Vascularites systémiques post-infectieuses: guérison sans corticothérapie.

UNLABELLED: In the most cases the causes of systemic vasculitis are unknown and treatment is symptomatic (corticosteroids often associated with immunosuppressive agents). We report three cases of systemic vasculitis associated with infections for which dramatic improvement was observed without cortico-therapy (in two patients). CASE REPORT 1: A previously overweight 72-year-old woman was admitted because of a one-year history of fever, fourteen kilogram weight loss, vascular purpura, and polyneuropathy. Abnormal laboratory values included inflammatory syndrome [erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR): 80mm/first hour, thrombocytosis: 500,000/microliter, hypereosinophilia (1200/microliter) and positive perinuclear anti-neutrophil cytoplasmic antibodies (p-ANCA) [anti-myelo-peroxydase antibodies: 30 U (normal < 7)]. Neuromuscular biopsy showed necrotizing vasculitis involving small and medium arteries. Further studies revealed a florid diverticulosis of the colon and no other severe visceral involvement. Treatment was started then with sigmoidectomy. Within six weeks her general condition improved dramatically without corticotherapy: regression of all systemic manifestations, the ESR normalized, and p-ANCA became negative. Ten months later she was still asymptomatic. CASE REPORT 2: An 50-year-old-man developed a progressive fifteen-kilogram weight loss (within 2 months), severe polyneuropathy of all four limbs. His ESR was 120 mm/first hour, and C-reactive protein 200 mg/l. Neuromuscular biopsy showed necrotizing vasculitis affecting small vessels in the nerve and no immune deposits. Stomatologic examination revealed a multiple foci of dental infections. The extraction of all these foci of infections associated with antibiotics improved dramatically all systemic manifestations (within eight weeks), once more without corticotherapy. Eight months later the patient remained asymptomatic. CASE REPORT 3: A 30-year-old-woman was admitted because of five-week history of fever, myalgias, polyarthritis, and cutaneous nodules in her limbs. Abnormal laboratory values included inflammatory syndrome, proteinuria of 0.7 g/day, and a significant rise in Chlamydia trachomatis antibodies titres from 1/64 to 1/256 over a 5 week period. She had a previous history of genital condyloma. The prednisone initialed (0.5 mg/kg/day) twelve days prior to admission was gradually reduced (stopped within 2 months) and treatment with doxycycline (200 mg/day) was initiated. Within six weeks of antibacterial treatment we assisted to a total regression of the initial clinical manifestations and laboratory values became normalized. Ten months later she remained asymptomatic. CONCLUSION: In systemic vasculitis, investigations in a search of foci of infections are of dual interest: possible etiologic agent like our case reports (strong evidence for an infectious association) and, from a therapeutic perspective, we must identify the microbes behind vasculitis syndromes, since treatment with corticosteroids may have serious consequences if the patient has an active infectious disease.

Vasculitis gingival como complicación de sepsis de punto de partida enteral / Vasculitis gingival sepsis complicating enteral starting point

Vasculitis es la inflamación de vasos sanguíneos, con isquemia, necrosis y compromiso sistémico. se describe el manejo multidisciplinario de niña de 4 meses quien ingresó al hospital universitario de Maracaibo con fiebre, diarrea, deshidratación, consciente, con períodos de somnolencia, abdomen distendido, ausencia de ruidos hidroaéreos. Posteriormente presenta convulsión, deterioro del estado general, lesiones eritematosas múltiples y en rodetes gingivales, de color blanco parduzco, necróticas, manifestaciones de shock séptico. Antecedente de ingestión de n-butilbromuro de hioscina. laboratorio: anemia, leucocitosis, proteína c reactiva elevada, cultivos negativos. Biopsia del rodete gingival: vasos sanguíneos con paredes infiltradas por células inflamatoriasmononucleares y polimorfonucleares dispersas y necróticas, destrucción y oclusión del endotelio, confirmando la vasculitis gingival. Recibió antibioticoterapia, soporte hemodinámico, cirugía de zonas necrosadas. egresó a los 15 días con diagnóstico de vasculitis gingival por sepsis de origen enteral. el manejo interdisciplinario médico-odontológico facilita la resolución de situaciones generales con compromiso bucodental

Vasculitis is the inflammation of blood vessels, with ischemia, necrosis and systemic involvement. this paper describes the multidisciplinary management of a 4 month old female infant that was admitted to the hospital universitario de Maracaibo with fever,diarrhea, dehydration, periods of somnolence, distended abdomen, and absence of bowel sounds. later, the patient presented seizures, deterioration of her general condition, multiple erythematous and brownish white, necrotic lesions of the gingival border mucosa, and septic shock manifestations. the patient had a history of ingestion of n-butylbromid hyoscine. laboratory tests: anemia, leukocytosis,elevated c-reactive protein, negative cultures, biopsy of the gingival border: blood vessel walls infiltrated by scattered and necrotic polymorphonuclear and mononuclear inflammatory cells, destruction and occlusion of the endothelium confirming gingival vasculitis. treatment included antibiotics, surgery of necrotic areas and hemodynamic support. she was discharged after 15 days with the diagnosis of gingival vasculitis secondary to enteral sepsis. Medical and dentistry interdisciplinary management facilitates the resolution of generalsituations with oral involvement