Autoimmune Diseases, 2011 Acute and Complex Situations

Autoimmune Diseases: Acute and Complex Situations provides a detailed overview of conditions associated with autoimmune diseases that are considered either life-threatening or requiring complex management. These include abdominal pain, arthritis, cutaneous ulcers, gastrointestinal hemorrhage, epilepsy, pancreatitis, stroke and white-matter CNS lesions.

Autoimmune Diseases: Acute and Complex Situations addresses the latest clinical and immunological prognostic factors that may help to identify patients at higher risk of developing potentially life-threatening involvement. This book comprehensively helps the reader to diagnose these patients, in whom an early therapeutic approach is essential.

Autoimmune Diseases: Acute and Complex Situations is a valuable reference tool for rheumatologists, internists, immunologists, and all the specialists involved in the multidisciplinary care of patient with rheumatic and systemic autoimmune diseases.

Assessment and Management of the Rheumatological Patient on the Critical Care Unit  .-Life-threatening Complications of Systemic Lupus Erythematosus.- Catastrophic Antiphospholipid Syndrome.- Complex Situations in Rheumatoid Arthritis.-Sjögren’s Syndrome: Beyond Sicca Involvement.- Systemic Sclerosis: Severe Involvement of Internal Organs.- Vasculitic Emergencies in Patients with Large-vessel Vasculitides.- Life-threatening Presentations of ANCA-related Vasculitis.- Severe Polyarteritis Nodosa.-Life-threatening Cryoglobulinemia.- Behçet Disease: Clinical Presentations Affecting Prognosis and Survival.- Myositis: When Weakness Can Kill.- Complicated Sarcoidosis: Challenges in Dealing with Severe Manifestations.- Complex Situations in Patients with Adult-onset Still’s Disease.- Managing Acute and Complex Dermatological Situations.- Life-threatening Autoimmune Haematological Disorders.- Autoimmune Ear, Nose and Throat Emergencies.- Ophthalmological Emergencies in Rheumatic and Autoimmune Diseases.- Emergencies for the Vascular Surgeon.- Complicated Pregnancy in Patients with Autoimmune Systemic Diseases.- The Complex Management of Viral-related Autoimmune Diseases.- The Role of Intravenous Immunoglobulins in the Management of Acute Complex Autoimmune Conditions.-Life-threatening Complications of Biological Therapies

Munther A. Khamashta, MD, FRCP, PhD is the Director of the Lupus Unit in the St Thomas Hospital of London, UK. Dr Munther Khamashta was born in Bethlehem (Palestine).  He studied medicine in Barcelona, Spain and trained in internal medicine in Madrid, Spain.  Due to his interest in connective tissue diseases, he joined the Lupus Unit at St. Thomas’ in 1986 and has since worked tirelessly for the unit both clinically and in research.  He runs a large Lupus pregnancy clinic and has published over 500 clinical and research studies in lupus, antiphospholipid syndrome, vasculitis, Sjögren syndrome and related conditions. 

Manuel Ramos-Casals MD, PhD is a Consultant of the Department of Systemic Autoimmune Diseases, Head of the "Josep Font" Laboratory of Autoimmune Diseases of the IDIBAPS , Hospital Clínic, Barcelona, and Assistant Professor, Department of Medicine, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain. He has published more than 100 original articles focused on Sjögren’s syndrome and related conditions, has edited 6 books on systemic autoimmune diseases and has received several national grants to investigate autoimmune diseases.

The Editors have extensive experience in the management of the main systemic autoimmune diseases, such as systemic lupus erythematosus, antiphospholipid syndrome, vasculitis, scleroderma, Sjögren’s syndrome and biological therapies. They have developed many clinical and basic research projects and, in the last 5 years, have published many reports in the leading journals in rheumatology and internal medicine.

An overview of the main complex and acute clinical situations occurring in patients with Systemic Autoimmune Disease assists the reader to quickly and easily locate the different life-threatening, complex situations in separate chapters for each disease.

Descriptions of the latest clinical and immunological prognostic factors that may help to identify patients at higher risk of developing potentially life-threatening involvement aids the reader to diagnose these patients, in whom an early therapeutic approach is essential.

The inclusion of nearly 100 images and diagnostic/therapeutic algorithms illustrates the text with clinical photographs of the main organs involved, and helps the reader to make diagnostic and therapeutic decisions.

The most up-to-date opinions of the leading international clinical experts on the management of these difficult situations assists the reader to make decisions in situations for which there is currently an almost-complete lack of information from any source.

An exhaustive therapeutic update, specifically focused on new agents and experimental techniques for managing complex situations informs the reader of recent advances in the therapeutic management of severe clinical situations, and suggests therapeutic guidelines according to a hierarchy of evidence consistent with evidence-based sources.

Includes supplementary material: sn.pub/extras