Microvascular abnormalities in patients with rheumatoid arthritis

Microvascular involvement represents one of the first apparent steps in many autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Early in the disease, peripheral microangiopathy may be easily recognized and studied by videocapillaroscopy. The aim of this study has been to observe the differences in labial microcirculation between healthy patients and patients suffering from RA. A total of 30 healthy patients and 30 patients suffering from RA were examined. The patients with conditions known to compromise microcirculation, such as diabetes, hypertension, or some pharmacological treatments were not included in the study. All the patients were non-smokers. Labial capillaroscopy was used to investigate the characteristics of microcirculation. Visibility, course, tortuosity, as well as the possible presence of microhemorrhages, the average caliber of the capillary loops and the number of visible capillary loops per square millimeter were evaluated for each patient. The investigation was simple, non-invasive, and repeatable for each patient. In patients suffering from RA, it was possible to observe a reduced caliber of capillaries, as well as greater elongated capillaries, in comparison to controls. This study shows that capillary alterations in patients suffering from RA occur in labial mucosa microcirculation; such evidence could be extremely important in the diagnosis of suspected RA.     

辨证治疗类风湿关节炎31例

[目的]观察辨证治疗类风湿性关节炎31例。[方法]桂枝芍药知母汤、三子养亲汤、活络效灵丹、止痉散乌头汤化裁。2个月为1个疗程。[结果]治疗31例,其中治愈10例,好转18例,未愈3例,总有效率:90.32%。[结论]辨证治疗类风湿关节炎可取的良好疗效。     

正清风痛宁对类风湿性关节炎的治疗价值

目的观察正清风痛宁联合西药治疗类风湿性关节炎的疗效。方法将72例类风湿性关节炎患者,随机分为治疗组和对照组。对照组予萘普生、泼尼松、甲氨蝶呤、柳氮磺吡啶,以及对症治疗;治疗组在对照组治疗基础上加用正清风痛宁缓释片治疗,疗程半年。结果除治疗组2例、对照组3例失访或未坚持治疗外,治疗半年后,两组其余病人的关节疼痛、肿胀、压痛,关节活动度、晨僵时间,均有明显的改善与好转,但治疗组总有效率97.2%,疗效明显优于对照组的87·5%,且副作用轻微。结论正清风痛宁联合西药治疗类风湿性关节炎,效果显著,安全性较好。     

云克治疗类风湿关节炎临床疗效观察

目的:观察云克 (99Tc- MDP)治疗类风湿关节炎 (RA)的疗效。 方法:对 80例类风湿关节炎 (RA)患者应用云克进行静脉治疗 2 1d,并对治疗前后的相关指标进行对照分析。结果 :治疗前与治疗后相比 ,患者晨僵持续时间、握力、ESR、CRP、RF有统计学意义 (P <0 .0 5 ) ,患者关节压痛数及关节肿胀数差异无统计学意义 (P >0 .0 5 )。 结论:云克治疗类风湿关节炎能改善临床症状及实验室指标 ,远期疗效好 ,而且毒副作用小。     

CD-Horizon器械治疗特发性脊柱侧凸的临床研究

[目的]探讨特发牲脊柱侧凸治疗方法,总结应用CD-Horizon(CD-H)钉-棒系统与钉-钩-棒系统的治疗效果。[方法]自2000年1月~2004年1月,采用CD-H器械治疗85例特发性脊柱侧凸患者,其中钉-棒系统51例(A组),钉-钩-棒系统34例(B组),比较术前、术后与随访2年冠状面与矢状面的角度及旋转度。[结果]85例患者平均随访3年半,术后及随访2年时冠状面及矢状面矫正率A组明显优于B组(P<0.05)。术后2年2组冠状面矫正度的丢失有明显的差异。2组患者旋转矫正Ⅰ~Ⅱ度。术前、术后及术后2年,2组Cobb s角自身得分显示术后明显低于术前(P<0.05),与术后2年随访得分相比无差异(P>0.05)。[结论]CD-Horizon器械是治疗特发性脊柱侧凸比较有效的方法,钉-棒系统较钉-钩-棒系统相比效果更佳。     

Gold complex research in medical science. Difficulties with experimental design

Despite the use of gold complexes in modern medicine for over 100 years and the use of gold complexes in the management of rheumatoid disease for more than 60 years, the definitive mechanisms of action for efficacy and for toxicity have not been established. Gold is a group 1b metal in the periodic table with several oxidation states but it is only Au(I) which is active in the biological milieu. Gold sodium thiomalate is not only a polymeric structure, but also has the chiral ligand, thiomalic acid. Gold sodium thiomalate thus can exist in several different physical states which may have different biological activity. In addition the pharmacokinetic profile of gold complexes has been of little value in the understanding of either the mechanism of action, efficacy or toxicity for both the injectable and the oral gold complexes. Many authors have misinterpreted research data on the activities of gold complexes because they compared gold complexes of different structures, and gold complexes which exist at different pH. Experimental work in our laboratory has identified that gold sodium thiomalate is a mixture and can exist as either a yellow or a colourless solution. These have some similar but several different biological activities. Many factors contribute to the lack of understanding of the action of gold complexes. Some of these factors are related to the wide variation in physical structure and biological activities exhibited by these compounds.     

Chronic orchialgia: Consider gabapentin or nortriptyline before considering surgery

OBJECTIVE: To establish if there is a role for gabapentin or nortriptyline in the treatment of chronic orchialgia. METHODS: Twenty-six consecutive patients with chronic orchialgia were seen in the chronic pain clinic by a multidisciplinary team. A pain questionnaire was completed prior to commencing either gabapentin or nortriptyline. They were reviewed at 3 months and a repeat questionnaire completed. A 50% improvement in pain was considered successful. RESULTS: Complete data was available for 19 patients. Overall, 61.5% of patients commenced on gabapentin and 66.6% of patients commenced on nortriptyline had a greater than 50% improvement in pain. Patients with post-vasectomy testicular pain were considered as a subgroup. None of these patients had a greater than 50% improvement in pain. However, 80% of patients in the subgroup with idiopathic chronic orchialgia had a greater than 50% improvement in pain. CONCLUSION: Although this is a small study, it appears that gabapentin and nortriptyline are effective in the treatment of idiopathic chronic orchialgia but not post-vasectomy pain.     

Juvenile Myoclonic Epilepsy: Factors of Error Involved in the Diagnosis and Treatment

Juvenile myoclonic epilepsy (JME), a common form of idiopathic generalized epilepsy, has a distinct clinical and electroencephalographic profile. Often JME is not recognized, with serious consequences on the sufferers. We examined factors contributing to the missed diagnosis even in an epilepsy clinic. Of 70 JME patients, 66 (91.4%) were not diagnosed on referral and 22 (33%) were not initially recognized in the epilepsy clinic. The correct diagnosis was established after a mean of 8.3 +/- 5.5 years from disease onset and an interval of 17.7 +/- 10.4 months from first evaluation in the epilepsy clinic. Myoclonic jerks, the hallmark of the disease, were not usually reported by patients. Similarly, relevant questioning may not be included in the history. Absence seizures antedating jerks by many years, myoclonic jerks reported as unilateral, generalized tonic-clonic seizures occurring during sleep and focal EEG abnormalities are other factors contributing to not recognizing JME. Our study reemphasizes the need to have not only a correct seizure diagnosis but also a correct epilepsy-disease diagnosis.     

Binucleated and multinucleated forms of plasma cells in synovia from patients with rheumatoid arthritis

A morphological examination of synovial tissue from 25 patients with rheumatoid arthritis revealed that binucleated or multinucleated plasma cells were present in all samples and absent in synovia obtained from 16 control patients. Plasma cells containing two, three of four nuclei constitutet a mean 3% of the total plasma cell population. They were aways found amongst plasma cell infiltrates and in close association with small blood vessels. Ultrastructural analysis found no evidence of cellular membranes separating the individual nuclei in binucleated or multinucleated plasma cells, suggesting that the cells did not arise from fusion. Some of these plasma cells had a diameter approaching 100 μm, and many were in intimate contact with macrophages. The demonstration of a few cells with mitotic figures within the infiltrates suggests that the maintenance of plasma cell numbers in rheumatoid synovium may depend, in part, upon their local proliferation. Received: 25 August 1997 / Accepted: 2 October 1997