Active clinical trials for "Vasculitis"

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a complex heterogeneous autoimmune disease with a wide variety of clinical and serological manifestations that may affect any organ. Vasculitis prevalence in SLE is reported to be between 11% and 36%.

A screening of patient histories at the clinics of Dermatology of the universities of Zurich, Basel and Bern is performed in order to identify patients with a history of Livedoid vasculopathy. Patients with a history of livedoid vasculopathy are asked to participate in the study. After reading the patient information and if the informed consent is signed patients are included in the study. Patients are questioned about their smoking history and blood is drawn in order to perform a screening for thrombophilia.

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the value of positron emission tomography/computed tomography in various inflammatory conditions caused by bacterial infection or vasculitis. Glucose analog FDG is sensitive to detect inflammation foci but we hypothesize that other imaging agents such as PK11195 and Ga-citrate may have added value in certain applications.

The purpose of this study is to learn about reproductive health, including fertility and pregnancies, in people with vasculitis.

Neutrophils emerge as key immune cells in the initiation and perpetuation of immune responses in autoimmune diseases. They display marked abnormalities in phenotype and function in various autoimmune diseases, including systemic vasculitis, systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and rheumatoid arthritis (RA). These neutrophils are characterised by an extended life span, increased capacity to produce reactive oxygen species, active gene expression and release of extracellular traps. Consequently, there is a need for better understanding of neutrophil phenotype and functions in these conditions, as well as for identifying molecules capable of specifically manipulating neutrophil function. The investigators have recently discovered that interferon lambdas (IFN-λs), also known as interleukin 28 (IL28) and interleukin 29 (IL29), class II cytokines with previously studied anti-viral biological functions, specifically suppress neutrophil infiltration and interleukin-1β production and thereby, halt and reverse the development of collagen induced arthritis (CIA). The investigators propose to further investigate the cellular and molecular mechanisms behind this suppression and examine the translational potential of the investigators' finding by examining the IFN-λ receptor expression and function in neutrophils isolated from the blood of healthy donors and rheumatic patients (early rheumatoid arthritis and vasculitis).

Cryoglobulinemia are responsible for systemic vasculitis, and the most frequently targeted organs are the skin, joints, kidney and peripheral nervous system. Cryoglobulinemia vasculitides are associated with significant morbidity and mortality, and require therapeutic intervention. With the discovery of hepatitis C virus (HCV) as the etiologic agent for most cases of mixed cryoglobulinemia new opportunities and problems for crafting therapy of HCV mixed cryoglobulinemia (MC) have emerged. A new and major concern was the potential adverse effects that immunosuppressive therapy with glucocorticoids and cytotoxic drugs could have on an underlying chronic viral infection. Alternatively the discovery of HCV provided the opportunity to control HCV-MC with antiviral therapy based on the belief that the underlying infection was driving immune complex formation and resultant vasculitis. Inducing a sustained virologic and clinical response and minimizing the use of immunosuppressive drugs are the main goals in the treatment of patients with HCV-MC vasculitis. Aggressive antiviral therapy has been shown to induce a complete remission of HCV-MC in up to 70% of patients. New antiviral combination, Interferon (IFN)-free regimens have recently proved very high virological response rate and with a very good safety profile and now need to be evaluated in severe and/or refractory HCV-MC patient's population.

The aims of this study are to optimize MR imaging and MR angiography sequences and image reconstruction for 3T magnetic resonance imaging system scanners, which are already used in the clinical environment on patients with or with suspected intracranial vasculopathies. Improvements in these areas will have positive implications for medical diagnosis and treatment.

A qualitative study using interviews with patients who have antineutrophil cytoplasm antibody (ANCA) associated vasculitis, to develop a patient reported outcome (PRO)measure

Neutrophil cytoplasmic autoantibodies (ANCA) are essential serum markers in the diagnosis of vasculitis. Indirect immunofluorescence with microscope reading by two readers is the reference technique for their detection. In the AP-HM immunology laboratory we are looking for ANCAs in more than 7000 sera per year. The reading of the slides is time-consuming, dependent operator, and lacks standardization. In order to optimize these parameters, we propose the automation of ANCA reading by using a robotic platform developed in our laboratory and called ICARE (Immunofluorescence for Computed Antibodies Rational Evaluation). This microscopic imaging platform with automated reading is currently used in daily routine for the detection of anti-nuclear autoantibodies. The objective of the project is to establish an algorithm allowing i) to automatically and reproducibly discriminate the positive ANCAs from the negative ANCAs and ii) to propose to the biologist a fluorescence aspect. The investigators will then validate this algorithm on 2000 consecutive routine samples sent to the laboratory for ANCA research. The usual care will not be changed, only a phase of acquisition of the images will be added to the analysis. The investigators expect to use this algorithm "ICARE / ANCA" in daily hospital routine and thus optimize the results with a real economic impact is 50% less reading time.

Initial worsening following initiation of rituximab therapy in patients with cryoglobulinemic vasculitis was described in 3.6% of cases. This worsening is often a serious condition, with high levels of mortality. The objective of our study is to evaluate the efficacy of preventive plasmapheresis prior to the introduction of rituximab performed in Montpellier France since 2013 by assessing the frequency and severity of this flare effect in these patients compared to those reported in the literature.