Which of the statements below about the diagnosis of cold agglutinin disease (CAD) are correct? Select one of the options for each question, then submit your answers to see your score and the average score for everyone who has taken the quiz. Read more about the diagnosis of CAD.
A team from the Division of Hematology, Rheumatology and Respiratory Medicine at Kagawa University in Japan presented the case of a 31-year-old female patient diagnosed with type 1 hereditary angioedema (HAE) and systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) who developed multiple symptoms. The case report was recently published in Allergy, Asthma & Clinical Immunology. Though SLE is…
Therapies targeting the pathogenic B-cell clone and the classical complement pathway have emerged as a new hope for treating cold agglutinin disease (CAD), allowing clinicians to choose between treatment approaches. In a new review article published in Transfusion Medicine Reviews, Sigbjørn Berentsen and Geir E. Tjønnfjord highlighted important differences between the B-cell-directed combination of bendamustine…
Myasthenia gravis is a multisystem autoimmune disease that results in fatigable muscle weakness. There are various classes of the disease depending on its severity. In mild cases, only the extraocular muscles are involved; in severe cases, the throat and respiratory muscles are involved, leading to breathing difficulties. Among the lesser known symptoms of myasthenia gravis…
A new study has determined that moderate or severe anemia is relatively common among female patients with myasthenia gravis (MG). The study, published in PLOS ONE, noted that the long-term immunosuppressive treatment commonly administered to patients with MG is a probable cause of anemia. “The causes of anemia are complex and diverse, and some of…
Which of the statements below about cold agglutinin disease (CAD) etiology are correct? Select one of the options for each question, then submit your answers to see your score and the average score for everyone who has taken the quiz. Read more about CAD etiology here.
Specific factors regarding care in the neurology intensive care unit (ICU) for patients with myasthenia gravis (MG) could predict future complications, according to a study recently published in Neurological Sciences. This retrospective study included 118 patients previously diagnosed with MG who together experienced 130 severe exacerbations that required admission to the neurology ICU at a…
Although emergency and general measures for warm antibody autoimmune hemolytic anemia (AIHA) and AIHA due to cold agglutinin disease (CAD) are similar, specific therapies available for warm AIHA are not effective for CAD. Therefore, the preliminary identification of the type of antibody involved in each case is particularly relevant, according to a recently published article in Clinical…
Efgartigimod does not impair the ability of patients with myasthenia gravis (MG) to generate new specific immunoglobin G (IgG) responses, regardless of the timing of vaccinations, a new study published in Autoimmunity found. These findings suggest that efgartigimod treatment has no effect on long-lived plasma cells and that protective antibody levels obtained via vaccination can…
While I wait for a cure for cold agglutinin disease (CAD), I must live life and avoid, as best I can, getting sick and or cold.
