La Revue de médecine interne
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Review Case Reports
[ANCA vasculitis preceded by isolated joint manifestations. Report of two cases and literature review].
Joint manifestations of ANCA (antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibody) associated vasculitis (AAV) are extremely common in the progression of systemic damages. However, the joint involvement is rarely isolated. The diagnosis and the treatment are difficult in this particular situation and few data are available on the topic. ⋯ Isolated joint manifestations of ANCA vasculitis are rare but can lead to a delay in diagnosis. ANCA vasculitis should be considered in seronegative symmetrical polyarthritis by looking for ANCA in a second line biological test. Methotrexate is the first treatment option to be considered. In case of insufficient response or failure, rituximab seems an interesting option in this context.
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It is common to initiate a long-term corticosteroid therapy for inflammatory diseases. Various specialists are involved in this prescription, and associated measures to prevent side effects are not consensual, with the exception of osteoporosis. ⋯ Unfortunately, it is difficult to give clear recommendations because of the lack of evidence in some fields, especially as they should be adapted to patient's age and comorbidities. We propose a summary table of associated measures to long-term steroid therapy prescription and suggest a monitoring frequency.
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Mitochondrial diseases, characterized by a respiratory chain deficiency, are considered as rare genetic diseases but are the most frequent among inherited metabolic disorders. The complexity of their diagnosis is due to the dual control by the mitochondrial (mtDNA) and the nuclear DNA (nDNA), and to the heterogeneous clinical presentations; illegitimate association of symptoms should prompt the clinician to evoke a mitochondrial disorder. ⋯ Even if the new sequencing approaches have profoundly changed the diagnostic process, the brain imaging, the biological, the biochemical, and the histological explorations are still important highlighting the need for a multidisciplinary approach. While for most of the patients with a mitochondrial disease, only supportive and symptomatic therapies are available, recent advances in the understanding of the pathophysiological mechanisms have been made and new therapies are being developed and are evaluated in human clinical trials.
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The present article details the publication process and the vicissitudes of three articles about SARS-CoV-2 and its related disease (COVID-19). The three articles were published one month apart between March and May 2020. ⋯ Beyond the description of these three specific cases, this article raises issues about article retraction, peer-reviewing, preprints, authorship and the dissemination of scientific medical information, including through the mass media. It discusses new publishing modes and the dissemination of published information in clinical research.
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Mucocutaneous fungal infections are common and usually occur in the presence of certain risk factors. However, these infections can occur in patients with no known risk factors. This indicates the presence of an underlying genetic susceptibility to fungi reflecting an innate or adaptive immune deficiency. In this review, we highlight genetic factors that predispose to mucocutaneous fungal infections specially candidiasis and dermatophytosis.