Refractory Takayasu's arteritis successfully treated with the human, monoclonal anti-tumor necrosis factor antibody...

Treatment of Takayasu's arteritis remains a demanding challenge to clinicians. In many patients the course of the disease is characterized by frequent relapses and disease progression under conventional treatment with glucocorticoids and cytotoxic drugs. We present the case of a young woman with severe cerebrovascular and aortic involvement, who experienced disease progression in spite of more than 2 years of treatment with high doses of prednisone, methotrexate and cyclophosphamide. In this patient, treatment with the human, monoclonal anti-tumor necrosis factor-alfa (TNFalfa)-antibody adalimumab achieved clinical remission and allowed tapering of prednisone within a few months. The present case, as well as previous reports on the use of infliximab in giant cell and Takayasu's arteries, suggests that TNFa-blockade may be a new, promising treatment for glucocorticoid-refractory large-vessel vasculitis.