Dramatic responses to intravenous immunoglobulin in vasculitis.

Abstract

Intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) has been successfully used to treat autoimmune diseases. We report dramatic, rapid and sustained responses to its use in two cases of vasculitis: a patient with primary angitis of the central nervous system: and a patient with hepatitis-B-antigen-related polyarteritis nodosa, who failed treatment with corticosteroids. Improvement in gait and a marked decrease in serum creatinine, respectively, were observed within 24 h of the first dose of IVIG. Both patients remained stable for several months. We conclude that IVIG should be considered in patients with vasculitis who fail corticosteroids, or when a rapid response is required.