Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0019158 (hepatitis)
 30,205 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Optic neuritis occurred in three of our patients receiving treatment with alpha interferon-2b (Intron-A; 3MU thrice weekly) for chronic hepatitis. The complication appeared within, 1, 9 1/2 and 10 months of treatment, respectively. In all cases, blurred vision was the initial complaint and subsequent electrophysiologic investigation confirmed the presence of optic tract neuropathy. The patients had no other neurologic signs. Computerized tomography and magnetic resonance image of the brain were not remarkable. Psychiatric symptoms, in the form of an interferon-associated depressive reaction, were present in two of them; in one case, it was severe enough to require immediate discontinuation of treatment. In two patients the visual symptoms resolved and the parameters of neurophysiologic testing returned to normal within 1 month after stopping interferon. In one case, however, residual optic tract impairment associated with a unilateral central scotoma and a substantial decrease of visual acuity was present 2 years later, despite a course of methylprednizolone. In this patient the interferon treatment was continued for 3 months despite the visual symptoms, and he later received two additional interferon courses because of relapses of hepatitis. We conclude that clinically evident optic tract neuropathy may complicate interferon administration. Candidates for interferon treatment may need routine examination of optic fields and visual evoked potentials, before and during administration of the drug to avoid possibly permanent visual sequelae.
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PMID:Optic tract neuropathy complicating low-dose interferon treatment. 783 21

Interferons are used in the therapy of multiple sclerosis, Kaposi's sarcoma, hepatitis and melanoma. Their short half-life that requires frequent injections can be increased by polyethylene glycol (PEG) modification. A 50-year-old patient was diagnosed as having an acrolentiginous melanoma (Breslow >5 mm, Clark level IV) and inguinal lymph node metastases. After surgical excision and lymphadenectomy, immune therapy with 6.0 microg pegylated interferon alpha(2b)/kg body weight, s.c., was started. Cutaneous ulcerations at the injection sites developed 9 months after treatment initiation. The patient also developed blurred vision and presented with binasal scotomas and pathological visually evoked potentials and electroretinogram. The cutaneous ulcerations slowly healed under local therapy and reduction of the concentration of the PEG-modified interferon from 0.86 to 0.43 mg/ml. The dosage was maintained. Two months later, the therapy was stopped due to disease progression. Vision subsequently recovered. Cutaneous reactions evolved at the sites of subcutaneous injections of PEG-modified interferon alpha(2b). Changes in vision can probably be attributed to immunotherapy.
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PMID:Cutaneous ulceration after injection of polyethylene-glycol-modified interferon alpha associated with visual disturbances in a melanoma patient. 1105 21

A 52-year-old woman was admitted to our hospital for further examination of blurred vision, abnormal lung shadows and an elevated level of angiotensin-converting enzyme. Sarcoidosis was suspected, however, careful history taking revealed the existence of photosensitivity and polyarthralgia. Laboratory tests showed lymphocytopenia, liver dysfunction, hypergammaglobulinemia, and positive anti-nuclear, anti-double stranded DNA and anti-smooth muscle antibodies. Liver biopsy examination showed chronic active hepatitis. She was diagnosed with the triplex of sarcoidosis, systemic lupus erythematosus and autoimmune hepatitis. Marked improvement was noted after corticosteroid therapy.
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PMID:Sarcoidosis accompanied by systemic lupus erythematosus and autoimmune hepatitis. 1791 29

A 24-year-old Vietnamese woman presented with a 3-month history of non-itchy erythematous plaques on the face, trunk and limbs. Borderline lepromatous leprosy was confirmed by clinical findings, acid-fast bacilli on skin biopsy specimen and skin smear and a history of exposure. Around the twentieth day of World Health Organization (WHO) multibacillary standard treatment (rifampin 600 mg per month, dapsone 100 mg per day, clofazimine 300 mg per month and 50 mg per day for 1 year), she developed fever, general malaise, blurred vision, cough, nausea, epigastric pain, and arthralgia. The skin lesions also became swollen. During hospitalization, her illness was complicated by retrobulbar optic neuritis, secondary bacterial pneumonia, pleuritis, ascites, hepatitis, antral gastritis, progressive normocytic anemia, and peripheral sensory loss. The patient recovered after receiving systemic steroid pulse therapy (prednisolone equivalent dose 1250 mg) with systemic antibiotics (cefuroxime), adjustment of her anti-lepromatous therapy, and supportive care. She resumed the WHO multibacillary regimen uneventfully. This patient presented with a diverse type 1 reaction, which is a complex immune response in leprosy. We found that the judicious use of high dose steroids followed by a slow tapering course is beneficial in managing patients with a severe type 1 reaction. At the 1-year follow up, the patient had generalized skin hyperpigmentation resulted from long-term clofazamine use and numbness on feet without other systemic sequelae.
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PMID:Corticosteroid pulse therapy for leprosy complicated by a severe type 1 reaction. 1856 21

Abstract A 24-year-old woman suffered from blurred vision and periorbital edema with remittent fever. She was diagnosed as having systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), complicated with myopia and retinopathy and severe chemosis. Antiphospholipid syndrome (APS), hemophagocytic syndrome, and liver involvement were also proven. We considered that APS might cause chemosis as a result of thrombosis-induced perfusion failure in the conjunctiva. In such cases, APS should be considered and anticoagulation therapy associated with steroid therapy should be initiated. In systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), chemosis, severe hepatitis, and hemophagocytic syndrome (HPS) are rare complications. It is well known that many cases of SLE are complicated with antiphospholipid syndrome (APS), which causes arteriovenous thrombosis. We report a case of SLE with transient myopia and severe chemosis complicated with severe hepatitis and HPS. As this patient had antiphospholipid antibodies, these ocular complications were considered to be related to APS.
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PMID:Transient myopia with severe chemosis as an initial manifestation of systemic lupus erythematosus. 2438 97