Vasculitis: lessons learned

Here is an important editorial by Philip Seo in the "Current Opinion of Rheumatology."

Very important points in this editorial are that cychlophosphamide is the best current treatment for run-away vasculitis, that trials outside the US have provided important information about vasculitis disease, and that the phenotype (or body type) of the individual patient needs to be taken into consideration when treating vasculitis.

My opinion: It sounds like that rheumatology (treatment of such disease like vasculitis, arthritis, etc) is learning some valuable lessons in treating my disease and others in the same category.

Germany Vol. One Photos

Germany Stock Photos (Landstuhl, Kaiserslautern, Spangenberg, etc.)

The photo on the left is part of the photo package.

80 photographs in TIFF format. You can edit any of these formats to fit your project. Because the photos are in TIFF format, the pixels have depth and clarity not found with JPEG format. Each photo is close to 9 meg. The file contains information about each photo.

The pictures were taken with a CD Mavica digital camera by Edward "Otto" Tune

These eighty photos are on a Light Scribe CD in a paper envelope. You can buy them on the sidebar. If you like this item, we may be able to offer other photos from this same photographer, including trains, desert scenes, etc.

Photos come from these areas in Germany:
Kaiserslautern: The German word Kaiserslautern means the Kaiser's purity. Kaiserslautern received this name because it was the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick Barbarossa's favorite hunting and fishing area. Another nickname for Kaiserslautern is Barbarossa town, referring to the same Emporer.

Several towns around the city have Celtic tombs (Rodenbach, and Miesau) that are about 2,500 years old. Plus there are old military enforcements dating back to WWII. Just a few kilometers from the city is an active military base - Ramstien AFB. This base still has several soldiers, airmen, and NATO soldiers that live and work there.

Landstuhl: Landstuhl is the German word for county seat. This town is filled with government buildings for the Rhineland-Palantine area. The largest military hospital in Europe (Landstuhl) hospital is near the city.

Nanstein Castle: Burg Nanstein is also called the Landstuhl castle. This castle was built by the Holy Roman Emporer Barbarossa in 1160. The castle was taken by the Knights of Sickengen through marriage in 1474, who were Protestants. Franz Von Sickengen, trying to put the area under Protestant rule attacked one of his neighbors. In retaliation three Princes of the Holy Roman Empire (Catholic princes) attacked the castle and killed Franz Von Sickengen (1523). His sons and grandsons rebuilt the castle, but it was blown up by the Palantine Elector in 1668.

Since 1856, the Sickingen family and local members of the community have excavated these ruins. The inner courtyards have become a popular place for festivals and rock concerts during the summer. It has some beautiful views from the third level of the castle

Also, Spangenberg and some Roman ruins found along the autobahns.

Terms of Use: All images are in a TIFF format and can be modified for commercial or non-commercial use. Once modified please include a photo credit, such as "Photo courtesy of Edward "Otto" Tune."

If you want to redistribute these photos (coffee mugs, mouse pads, etc), please contact the photographer for permission at ottotune@gmail.com.

Long-term management of patients taking immunosuppressive drugs

Denise C Hsu, Immunology Registrar, Department of Immunology, Concord Repatriation General Hospital, Sydney; and Constance H Katelaris, Professor, Clinical Immunology and Allergy, University of Western Sydney

Summary

The number of patients taking immunosuppressive drugs for the management of autoimmune inflammatory conditions is increasing. The general practitioner needs to be active in preventing, monitoring and managing the adverse effects of these drugs even long after the treatment has ceased. Monitoring is required because immunosuppressive drugs increase the risks of infection, malignancy, cardiovascular disease and bone marrow suppression. Some drugs have additional risks which require specific monitoring. Vigilance is needed as adverse effects may have atypical clinical presentations.

The rest of this information is here.

My comments: Another problem with long term immunosuppressive drugs like cychlophasphamide is that the patient can only take this drug so long without adverse affects. It can cause cancer in the bladder and possibly the kidneys. So the doctor (rheumatologist or gp) need to keep this in mind when treating any chronic disease and especially vasculitis.