title: Successful treatment with cyclosporine A of HCV-driven chronic liver disease mimicking autoimmune hepatitis in a patient with common variable immunodeficiency.
abstract: Common variable immunodeficiency (CVID) is the commonest primary immunodeficiency disease characterized by defective antibody production and various degrees of T cell numbers abnormality or impaired proliferation to mitogens. Clinical features include recurrent bacterial sinopulmonary and gastrointestinal infections. Autoimmunity is very common in CVID, occurring in approximately 25% of the patients particularly with autoimmune thrombocytopenia, hemolytic anemia, inflammatory bowel disease, and rheumatoid arthritis. Persistent antigen stimulation, secondary to a defective eradication of pathogens followed by a compensatory exaggerated chronic inflammatory response, is the primary cause leading to autoimmunity. Here we describe a girl with CVID in whom a chronic liver disease mimicking autoimmune hepatitis developed after hepatitis C virus infection. The immunosuppressive treatment with cyclosporine A proved effective in reversing liver disease.
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Biomedicina dell'Età Evolutiva, University of Bari, Italy.
authors.forename: Baldassarre
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Martire
authors.forename: Antonia
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Gentile
authors.forename: Ruggiero
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Francavilla
authors.forename: Attilio
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: De Santis
authors.forename: Domenico
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: De Mattia
mesh_terms: D002648:Child; D017074:Common Variable Immunodeficiency / Q000150:complications*; D016572:Cyclosporine / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D005260:Female; D019698:Hepatitis C, Chronic / Q000150:complications; D019693:Hepatitis, Autoimmune / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000209:etiology / Q000473:pathology; D006801:Humans; D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D008099:Liver / Q000473:pathology
chemical_list: D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents; D016572:Cyclosporine