Amyloidosis Associated with Inflammatory
Rheumatic Diseases in Finland
Declining Incidence & Better Outcome


By Kai Immonen
January 2012
Tampere University Press
Distributed by

ISBN: 9789514486197
100 pages

$87.50 Paper original


The aims of the study were to analyse changes in the epidemiology , clinical picture and treatment and outcome of AA amyloidosis in different rheumatic diseases over recent decades based on different registries (Heinola Rheumatism Foundation amyloid biopsy register, Finnish National Register for Kidney Diseases and clinical register of Kainuu Central Hospital). Before amyloidosis associated with rheumatic diseases, was one of the major causes of death within patients with inflammatory joint diseases.

The results of this study are: the incidence of amyloidosis has declined and the outcome improved. No new cases of amyloidosis have nowadays been found during childhood or adolescence within the patients with juvenile idiopathic arthritis. Since the beginning of the 2000's, the number of patients needing renal replacement therapy because of amyloidosis has been reduced by half - at the same time, the use of methotrexate has increased almost 4-fold. In disease-modifying antirheumatic drug resistant cases the use of new biological drugs seems promising.

 

Acta Universitatis Tamperensis No. 1674

 

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