Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) develops through a series of stages. In the seropositive subset of classified RA patients, a preclinical stage is present for years before the onset of clinically apparent…
Chronic inflammatory and autoimmune conditions result from an interplay between genetic and environmental factors culminating in the phenotypes of established disease. The transition from health to established disease is relatively…
Vivian P. Bykerk, MD, Editor Karen H. Costenbader, MD, MPH, Editor Kevin Deane, MD, PhD, Editor The ability to intervene at the earliest phases in the pathogenesis of a chronic…
The need to distinguish true primary systemic vasculitis from its multiple potential mimickers is one of the most challenging diagnostic conundrums in clinical medicine. This article reviews 9 challenging vasculitis…
The diagnosis of large-vessel vasculitis has experienced substantial improvement in recent years. While Takayasu arteritis diagnosis relies on imaging, the involvement of epicranial arteries by giant-cell arteritis facilitates histopathological confirmation….
The major manifestations of antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) are caused by thrombosis within the venous or arterial vasculature, whereas the vascular lesions in systemic vasculitis result from an inflammatory infiltrate in…
Cryoglobulins are immunoglobulins that precipitate at temperatures less than 37°C. They occur secondary to infectious, autoimmune, and malignant processes. In the Brouet classification, type I cryoglobulinemia is caused by hyperviscosity,…
Cogan and Behcet syndromes are considered large vessel vasculitides. Both are rare diseases, with varied clinical manifestations affecting multiple organ systems. Although both have hallmark symptoms (ocular and vestibuloauditory inflammation…
Polyarteritis nodosa (PAN) is a systemic disease, but variants are cutaneous PAN and single-organ disease. Histologic confirmation of vasculitis in medium-sized arteries is desirable, and biopsies should be obtained from…
