Objective To summarize the clinical characteristics of polyarteritis nodosa which begin with pulmonary lesions, so as to make early diagnosis and treatment possible. Methods Clinical data of three patients of polyarteritis nodosawhich began with pulmonary lesions were summarized includingmode of onset, evolvement of symptom and sign, data of laboratory test. The results of vascular ultrasound and histopathology examination were analyzed for their diagnostic value.Results Cough, sputum productive cough, and irregular high fever were present in the earlier period. Increases of C-reactive protein ( CRP) , erythrocyte sedimentation rate ( ERS) , white blood cell count ( WBC) , and anemia were main laboratory findings. Computed tomography revealed scattered infiltration in the lung. Anti-infective treatment was ineffective. Involvement of skin, kidney, gastrointestinal tract, nerve and muscle was present in sequence. Two of the three cases were confirmed by pathological biopsy. The symptoms were improved by the treatment with glucocorticoid. Conclusions Polyarteritis nodosa which begin with pulmonary lesions is easy to misdiagnose due to atypical symptoms. It is important for diagnosis of polyarteritis nodosa to collect evidence of systematic involvement through taking careful history and physical examination. Further angiography and biopsy can confirm the diagnosis. Cytotoxic drugs and/ or glucocorticoid are effective for the treatment of polyarteritis nodosa.
Objective To determine the airway wall thickness at the segmental and subsegmental levels in patients with bronchial asthma and eosinophilic bronchitis ( EB) by high resolution CT scanning,and evaluate its relationship with airway hyperresponsiveness. Methods High resolution CT scanning was performed in 14 subjects with asthma,15 subjects with EB, 15 subjects with cough variant asthma ( CVA) ,and 14 healthy volunteers. Total airway and lumen diameter, total airway cross sectional area and lumen area which corrected by body surface area ( BSA) were measured. The percentage of airway wall area to total airway cross sectional area ( WA% ) and wall thickness to airway diameter ratio ( T/D) were calculated for the right upper lobe apical segmental bronchus ( RB1) and all airways clearly visualized with a transverse diameter of 1-6 mm. Results T/D/BSA and WA% in the asthma patients were all significantly higher than those in the subjects with EB, CVA and healthy volunteers. T/D/BSA and WA% in the EB patients were significantly higher than the healthy volunteers, and similar with the CVA patients. Al /BSA in the patientswith asthma and CVA was less than the subjects with EB and the healthy volunteers. However, Al /BSA in the EB patients was similar with the healthy volunteers. Conclusions The airway wall thickness and remodeling can be measured and assessed by high resolution CT. Airway wall thickness and remodeling inEB patients are milder than asthma patients, which may be associated with airway hyperresponsiveness that presents in asthma but not in EB.