Anti-tumor necrosis factor-α treatment with infliximab for disseminated granuloma annulare.
Granuloma annulare (GA) is a chronic inflammatory disease of unknown etiology characterized by the development of plaques preferentially localized to the distal extremities. Spontaneous remission and relapses are quite common and the course of GA is not easy to predict. Moreover, most therapeutic regimens have been used anecdotally and with variable success. We report the case of a 62-year-old White female patient affected by disseminated GA unsuccessfully treated with psoralen plus UVA photochemotherapy, prednisone, and cyclosporine (ciclosporin) who responded to the anti-tumor necrosis factor-α monoclonal antibody infliximab administered intravenously at a dosage of 5 mg/kg at weeks 0, 2, and 6 and thereafter at monthly intervals for 10 additional months. Most of the GA lesions improved within 8 weeks and then slowly resolved within 10 months of treatment. We suggest that infliximab may be proposed as an additional therapeutic option in the treatment of recalcitrant forms of disseminated GA.
Department of Internal Medicine, University of Genoa, Genoa, Italy. giuseppe.murdaca@unige.it
Giuseppe
G
Murdaca
Barbara Maria
BM
Colombo
Gianfranco
G
Barabino
Matteo
M
Caiti
Paola
P
Cagnati
Francesco
F
Puppo
D000893:Anti-Inflammatory Agents / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D005260:Female; D016460:Granuloma Annulare / Q000188:drug therapy*; D006801:Humans; D000069285:Infliximab; D035002:Lower Extremity; D008875:Middle Aged; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors*; D034941:Upper Extremity
D000893:Anti-Inflammatory Agents; D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha; D000069285:Infliximab