1/5/13 1/5/13

Anemia due to hypothyroid

Even subclinical hypothyroid (reduced systemic thyroid effect despite normal lab results) has far-reaching consequences because the ability of every cell in the body to do its work is diminished. A study just published in the European Journal of Internal Medicine further confirms that hypothyroid can be a cause of anemia.

11/30/12 11/30/12

Prostate enlargement is promoted by autoimmune inflammation

Prostate enlargement—benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH)—is fundamentally an inflammatory process that can undergo conversion to malignancy and emerge as prostate cancer. The authors of a study just published in The Journal of Urology offer important evidence that autoimmune phenomena drive prostate inflammation and enlargement.

11/25/12 11/25/12

Preeclampsia, an autoimmune disease

Preeclampsia throws into turmoil 5% to 8% of pregnancies worldwide with potentially terrible consequences. Clinicians who participate in the management of pregnancy should appreciate the evidence revealing that preeclampsia is driven by autoimmunity.

11/11/12 11/11/12

Inflammatory bowel disease is associated with childhood antibiotic exposure

Inflammatory bowel disease includes ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease where the immune system attacks the large intestine and small intestine respectively. Considering the emerging science on the profound importance of the human micro biome for immune system maturation, regulation and tolerance, a study just published in the journal Pediatrics offering evidence that antibiotic exposure in childhood is associated with inflammatory bowel disease comes as no surprise.

11/4/12 11/4/12

Lyme disease, neuropsychiatric symptoms and autoimmunity

As with other chronic infections, the most devastating effects of Lyme disease can occur from the immune system losing tolerance for normal tissue as it cross-reacts while attacking the pathogen. A paper just published in The Open Neurology Journal reviews the body of knowledge on the neuropsychiatric symptoms of Lyme disease and other infections as an immune mediated neurodegenerative disorder, enlarged by a wealth of citations.

10/29/12 10/29/12

Lymphoma and autoimmunity

Lymphoma and other hematologic malignancies ('blood cancers') have been shown be previous investigators to be linked to autoimmunity. The authors of a paper just published in the Journal of Autoimmunity illustrate how epigenetic mechanisms can imbalance immune function in a way that contributes to both autoimmunity and hematologic malignancies such has lymphoma, leukemia, etc.

10/6/12 10/6/12

Acute gastrointestinal infection can turn on autoimmune disorders

Autoimmune disorders can be promoted by a variety of factors that must be considered in case management.Acute gastrointestinal infection—such as a food-borne illness or viral gastroenteritis—can cause the immune system to lose tolerance for commensal bacteria (the ones that normally live in the intestines), contributing to the development of autoimmune disorders.