Wegener's granulomatosis

Introduction: Wegener's granulomatosis

Wegener's granulomatosis: Wegener's granulomatosis is an uncommon disease, characterized by inflammation of the blood vessels (vasculitis). This inflammation ... more about Wegener's granulomatosis.

Wegener's granulomatosis: A rare disease involving blood vessel inflammation which can affect the blood flow to various tissues and organs and hence cause damage. The respiratory system and the kidneys are the main systems affected. More detailed information about the symptoms, causes, and treatments of Wegener's granulomatosis is available below.

Symptoms of Wegener's granulomatosis

• Non-specific symptoms
• Granulomas
• Upper respiratory tract symptoms
  • Cold-like symptoms
  • Sinus pain

See full list of 108 symptoms of Wegener's granulomatosis

Medical Textbooks Online about Wegener's granulomatosis

Book excerpts: Copyright © 2008 Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. All rights reserved.

Diagnostic Tests for Wegener's granulomatosis

• Blood tests
  • White blood cell count
  • Platelet count
  • Sedimentation rate
  • Antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibodies (ANCA) blood test - useful but may also be negative.

See full list of 18 diagnostic tests for Wegener's granulomatosis

Wrongly Diagnosed with Wegener's granulomatosis?

• Misdiagnosis of Wegener's granulomatosis

Misdiagnosis and Wegener's granulomatosis

Wegener's granulomatosis can be missed out: Wegener's granulomatosis is a condition of unknown etiology which usually affects the upper respiratory tract, lungs and the kidneys. This condition can...read more »

Rare case of Goodpasture syndrome: Good pasture syndrome is a rare autoimmune disease. Patients with this disease experience a rapid progression to renal failure and death...read more »

Read more about Misdiagnosis and Wegener's granulomatosis

Causes of Wegener's granulomatosis

Read more about causes of Wegener's granulomatosis.

Treatments for Wegener's granulomatosis

• Combination glucocorticoid drug and cytotoxic drug - most common therapy
• Glucocorticoid drugs
  • Prednisone
• Cytotoxic drugs
  • Cyclophosphamide (Cytoxan)

See full list of 5 treatments for Wegener's granulomatosis

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Prognosis for Wegener's granulomatosis

Prognosis for Wegener's granulomatosis: progressive fatal condition, mortality 28% at 5 years

More about prognosis of Wegener's granulomatosis

Reseach about Wegener's granulomatosis

Visit our research pages for current research about Wegener's granulomatosis treatments.

Clinical Trials for Wegener's granulomatosis

The US based website ClinicalTrials.gov lists information on both federally and privately supported clinical trials using human volunteers.

Some of the clinical trials listed on ClinicalTrials.gov for Wegener's granulomatosis include:

• Daclizumab to Treat Wegener's Granulomatosis - This study has been completed (Current: 23 Nov 2006) - Daclizumab
• Treatment of Wegener's Granulomatosis With Cyclophosphamide - This study has been completed (Current: 23 Nov 2006)
• Cyclophosphamide and Prednisone Followed by Methotrexate To Treat Vasculitides - This study has been completed (Current: 23 Nov 2006)
• Diagnostic Effectiveness of Virtual Bronchoscopy - This study has been completed (Current: 23 Nov 2006)
• Analysis of Bronchial Tissue and Fluid in Patients With Wegener's Granulomatosis - This study has been completed (Current: 23 Nov 2006)

See full list of 22 Clinical Trials for Wegener's granulomatosis

Statistics for Wegener's granulomatosis

• Medical statistics for Wegener's granulomatosis
• Prevalence and incidence statistics for Wegener's granulomatosis
• Death and Mortality statistics for Wegener's granulomatosis
• Society statistics for Wegener's granulomatosis

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Article Excerpts about Wegener's granulomatosis

Wegener's granulomatosis is an uncommon disease, characterized by inflammation of the blood vessels (vasculitis). This inflammation results in a reduction of oxygen in the blood and damages vital organs of the body by restricting blood flow to those organs and destroying normal tissue. Although vasculitis can damage any organ system, Wegener's granulomatosis primarily affects the respiratory tract (sinuses, nose, trachea [windpipe] and lungs) and the kidneys. This disorder can occur at any age and strikes men and women equally. It is rare in African Americans compared to whites. The cause of Wegener's granulomatosis is not known. (Source: excerpt from Wegener's Granulomatosis, NIAID Fact Sheet: NIAID)

Definitions of Wegener's granulomatosis:

Multisystem disease chiefly affecting males, characterized by necrotizing granulomatous vasculitis involving the upper and lower respiratory tracts, glomerulonephritis, and variable degrees of systemic small vessel vasculitis; considered an aberrant hypersensitivity reaction to an unknown antigen. - (Source - Diseases Database)

Wegener's granulomatosis is listed as a "rare disease" by the Office of Rare Diseases (ORD) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). This means that Wegener's granulomatosis, or a subtype of Wegener's granulomatosis, affects less than 200,000 people in the US population.
Source - National Institutes of Health (NIH)