Serum levels of CA 125 are elevated in patients with active systemic lupus erythematosus

Article Abstract:

Systemic lupus erythematosus is a connective tissue disease that causes skin lesions on the face and upper body, degeneration of the skin, and joint pain similar to arthritis. It is an autoimmune disease in that the immune system (the body's natural defense system for fighting infection) makes antibodies that attack and destroy the body's own tissues. Recently, the same antibodies, also called antinuclear antibodies, have been found in the blood of women with endometriosis (a condition that occurs when the tissue that forms the inner lining of the uterus, the endometrium, grows in the abdominal cavity outside of the uterus). In another study, blood levels of a protein called CA 125 were shown to be related to the severity of the endometriosis. Therefore, a study was performed to determine if this protein is present in the blood of women with systemic lupus erythematosus and to determine if it is related to the severity of the disease. Blood samples from 37 women with this disease were tested for CA 125 using a testing procedure called radioimmunoassay, which uses a radioactively labelled protein that will bind only to CA 125. Nine of the women had inactive disease (remission or no visible symptoms of disease) and 28 of the women had active disease (visible symptoms). The blood levels of CA 125 were twice as high in the women with active disease as in those with inactive disease. Ten of the 28 women with active disease had blood levels of CA 125 that were higher than the generally accepted upper limit. These results indicate that higher levels of CA 125 may be more common in women with active disease. It is concluded that systemic lupus erythematosus and endometriosis have several features in common. Antinuclear antibodies, antiovarian antibodies and high blood levels of CA 125 are associated with both diseases. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)

Systemic lupus erythematosus

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Autoantibodies associated with endometriosis: can their detection predict presence of the disease?

Article Abstract:

The endometrium is a mucus membrane that forms the inner lining of the uterus. During the menstrual cycle this membrane grows and is then shed during menstruation. When this membranous tissue appears and begins to grow in the abdomen, outside of the uterus, the condition is known as endometriosis. This condition is a leading cause of infertility in women, and it can cause bleeding in the abdominal cavity and abdominal pain. Endometriosis is not always easy to diagnose, and newer methods of diagnosis that do not involve surgery are needed. Recently, special proteins (called antiendometrial antibodies) have been identified in the blood of women with endometriosis. Therefore, a study was performed to determine if endometriosis could be diagnosed by testing blood samples for the presence of antiendometrial antibodies. Blood samples were obtained from 215 women about to undergo abdominal surgery. Eighty-three percent of the women who had endometriosis, as diagnosed by surgery, had antiendometrial antibodies in their blood. This means that 17 percent of the women with endometriosis did not have these antibodies in their blood and would not be diagnosed as having endometriosis if the blood test was the only test used. Also, a few women who did not have endometriosis had antiendometrial antibodies in their blood, indicating that there were only a few false positive test results. It is concluded that the detection of antiendometrial antibodies in the blood may be useful for identifying women with endometriosis. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)

Analysis, Women, Autoantibodies, Diseases, Gynecology

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Hysterosalpingographic diagnosis of uterine adenomyoma

Article Abstract:

Adenomyomas, uncommon benign uterine tumors, are characterized by the ingrowth of the endometrium into the uterine muscle structure. The condition is sometimes caused by the overgrowth of the uterus. During a procedure (hysterosalpingography) to form a connection between the uterus and the uterine tube after an obstructed portion of the tube had been removed, a network of fine channels (an adenomyoma) was detected and diagnosed in a confined area of the myometrium, the smooth muscle coat of the uterus. Adenomyosis of the circumscribed or diffuse type does not respond well to conservative surgery but it is possible to enucleate a true adenomyoma almost as easily as a regular uterine leiomyoma and it may be treated conservatively.

Medical examination, Myometrium, Hysterosalpingography, Leiomyosarcoma, Uterine tumors

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