Management of Graves' orbitopathy remains an important therapeutic challenge. Current therapeutic modalities are unsatisfactory in about one third of patients. Rituximab is a monoclonal antibody against CD20 antigen that is expressed in mature and immature B cells. Early experience with rituximab suggests that it is a promising alternative therapy for Graves' orbitopathy. Here we report a case ...

Graves' orbitopathy (GO) is the main extrathyroidal manifestation of Graves' disease, though severe forms are rare. Management of GO is often suboptimal, largely because available treatments do not target pathogenic mechanisms of the disease. Treatment should rely on a thorough assessment of the activity and severity of GO and its impact on the patient's quality of life. Local measures (artific...

PURPOSE To investigate an association between the levels of serum thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH)-receptor autoantibodies (TRAbs) and Graves' orbitopathy (GO) activity/severity scores, and compare the performance of three different TRAb assays in assessing the clinical manifestations of GO. MATERIALS AND METHODS Cross-sectional study. Medical records of 155 patients diagnosed with GO betwee...

The TSH receptor (TSHR) is the critical target for antibody production in Graves' disease (GD). Insulin-like growth factor 1 receptor (IGF1R) has been proposed as a second autoantigen in complications of GD such as orbitopathy. We attempted to induce orbital tissue remodeling in mice undergoing immunizations with plasmids encoding TSHR and IGF1R delivered by in vivo skeletal muscle electroporat...

Background Graves disease (GD) has increased in prevalence over the past decade in Africa. Despite this, the condition is not well described, especially in sub-Saharan Africa. Objective We have described the clinical characteristics and associated factors of GD in a cohort of patients attending a resource-limited setting tertiary hospital. Methods Patients were examined thoroughly and syste...

PURPOSE To assess the effectiveness of the upper eyelid double motion sign in Graves' orbitopathy (GO) in detecting thyroid dysfunction or a positive level of thyroid-related autoantibodies. METHODS GO was defined when more than two GO-related eyelid symptoms, including the double motion sign, existed with at least one positive thyroid-related blood test. Blood tests were performed in patient...

The authors present the endoscopic intranasal orbital decompression, one of the surgical techniques used for orbital decompression. It can be applied for various indications. The most common indications are: maxillo-facial trauma, orbital haemorrhage, subperiorbital abscess as the complication of sinusitis, optic neuropathy, thyroidassociated orbitopathy (Graves’ orbitopathy). The authors concl...

The clinical utility of the functional TSH receptor autoantibodies was prospectively evaluated in patients with thyroid-associated orbitopathy (TAO). Ophthalmic, endocrine, and serological investigations were performed in 101 consecutive patients with severe and active TAO. Serum thyroid stimulating (TSAb) and blocking (TBAb) antibody levels were measured with two bioassays using cells that exp...

Increased reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation and the consequent oxidative damage are involved in the development of several diseases, including autoimmune diseases. Graves' disease is an autoimmune disorder characterized by hyperthyroidism and, less frequently, orbitopathy. Hyperthyroidism is characterized by increased oxidative stress. Untreated hyperthyroidism is associated with an incr...

OBJECTIVE To compare soft tissue and fat volumes in the supraorbital area of healthy patients and patients with thyroid-associated orbitopathy (TAO) using 3-dimensional reconstruction software. METHODS The superiolateral orbital area was delineated on a bony framework. Three-dimensional reconstruction and volumetric calculation of the retro-orbicularis oculi fat (brow fat), galeal fat (includ...