Sputum Anticitrullinated Protein Antibodies in Patients With Long-standing Rheumatoid Arthritis.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to evaluate the presence of autoantibodies to cyclic citrullinated synthetic peptides (ACPAs) in the sputum of patients with long-standing rheumatoid arthritis (RA). METHODS: Nineteen consecutive RA patients and 16 age- and sex-matched control subjects participated in this cross-sectional study. All underwent complete lung function tests and provided induced sputum. Antibodies to citrullinated (CitP) and the corresponding norleucine-containing (NorP) peptides in the sputum of the RA patients and control subjects, as well as in the serum of the RA patients, were determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. RESULTS: Patients with RA had the following characteristics: mean disease duration of 12 years, Disease Activity Score for 28 joints of 3.44, and Sharp-van der Heijde score of 57.5. Ten of the 19 RA patients showed high titers of ACPAs in their sera. Four of the seropositive (40%), none of the seronegative RA patients, and only 1 of the control subjects showed detectable levels of ACPAs in their sputum. The ratio between the reactivity with CitP and NorP peptides in the sputum was significantly higher in RA sputum than in control sputum (1.33 ± 1.2 vs. 0.64 ± 0.14, P = 0.02). A positive correlation was found between sputum ACPAs and age, serum ACPAs, sputum anti-NorP, serum anti-CitP/NorP reactivity ratio, and the proportion of neutrophils and lymphocytes in the sputum. No significant correlation was found between sputum ACPAs and disease severity, history of smoking, lung function tests, or treatment for RA. CONCLUSIONS: Anticitrullinated protein/peptide antibodies can be detected in the sputum of RA patients and are correlated with the presence in the serum.

Non-contrast computed tomography after percutaneous nephrolithotomy: findings and clinical significance.

OBJECTIVE: To describe the post-percutaneous nephrolithotomy (PNL) non-contrast-enhanced computed tomography (NCCT) findings and assessed their clinical significance. NCCT evaluates stone clearance after PNL and also reveals procedure-related changes. METHODS: One hundred consecutive patients who underwent PNL were evaluated by NCCT one day post-procedure. Two radiologists analyzed the type and severity of the NCCT findings, which were then statistically analyzed in relation to the patient's clinical course. RESULTS: The patients' mean age was 54 years (range 18-82) and the mean maximal stone diameter was 37 mm (range 15-70). The median operative time was 110 minutes for an immediate stone-free rate of 83%, changing to 94% (P = .073) after a second-look PNL in 11 patients. The post-PNL NCCT findings were hydronephrosis (70%), atelectasis (54%), ipsilateral pleural effusion (52%), paracolic gutter fluid (44%), perinephric hematoma (40%), perinephric fluid (32%), ureteronephrosis (31%), renal swelling (23%), contralateral pleural effusion (22%), residual fragments (RFs) (17%), subcapsular hematoma (10%), and flank hematoma (6%). Univariate analysis revealed a significant association with clinical variables for all NCCT findings except for atelectasis, ureteronephrosis, contralateral pleural effusion, RFs, and flank hematoma. In multivariate analysis, only perinephric fluid (P = .007) and ipsilateral pleural effusion (P = .034) were associated with longer hospitalization, and perinephric fluid with longer recovery (P = .004). The complication rate was 12%, but none were linked with the radiological findings. CONCLUSION: This work describes the post-PNL NCCT findings and their clinical significance. Perinephric fluid and ipsilateral pleural effusion were found to independently predict longer hospitalization and recovery time.