Renal disease is a common complication of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and can occur secondary to RA or be induced by therapeutic agents. Recently, glomerular deposition of galactose-deficient IgA1 (Gd-IgA1) was identified as a feature of primary IgA vasculitis with nephritis (IgA-VN). We herein report a case of IgA-VN in an RA patient whose disease activity was controlled by treatment with etanercept. To distinguish between primary IgA-VN and secondary IgA-VN caused by RA or etanercept, we performed immunostaining of renal biopsy sections with the Gd-IgA1-specific antibody KM55. Positive KM55 staining confirmed the diagnosis of primary IgA-VN in a patient with RA.

Patient: Male, 48-year-old Final Diagnosis: Neuroleptic malignant syndrome Symptoms: Altered mental status • fatigue • fever • generalized weakness • loss of appetite Medication: — Clinical Procedure: — Specialty: Critical Care Medicine • Endocrinology and Metabolic • Neurology Objective: Unusual clinical course Background: Considering the ongoing coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, sufficient information about common and serious adverse events is needed to rapidly distribute COVID-19 vaccines worldwide. We report a case of neuroleptic malignant syndrome (NMS) with adrenal insufficiency after initial vaccination with Pfizer/BioNTech BNT162b2. Case Report: A 48-year-old man presented to the Emergency Department with fever and an altered mental status 7 days after receiving the first dose of the BNT162b2 COVID-19 vaccine. The patient had a history of end-stage renal disease and epilepsy treated with valproate. He was diagnosed with NMS based on the clinical findings of hyperthermia, muscular rigidity, and an elevated creatine kinase level. Additionally, a reduction in the response of cortisol to adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) stimulation was observed in the rapid ACTH stimulation test. The patient was treated with dantrolene, bromocriptine, and hydrocortisone, and he responded well to treatment. Dantrolene and bromocriptine were tapered off over 4 weeks. Hydrocortisone was also tapered, and the patient was discharged on oral hydrocortisone (30 mg). Conclusions: The present case suggests a possible link between the BNT162b2 COVID-19 vaccine and NMS with adrenal insufficiency based on the temporal relationship between vaccine administration and disease onset, although the patient was taking valproate, a potential cause of NMS. Having a high level of suspicion is important because the diagnosis of NMS with adrenal insufficiency is often challenging due to non-specific clinical manifestations. However, this case does not negate the utility of vaccination because these complications are extremely rare and can be treated with early diagnosis and proper management.

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Objective Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) have been reported to have beneficial effects in patients with IgA nephropathy (IgAN). Although DHA and EPA have different mechanisms of action, no study to date has assessed their individual actions in patients with IgAN. This study therefore analyzed the effects administering DHA in addition to EPA for the treatment of IgAN. Methods Twenty-one IgAN patients who were being treated with EPA (1,800 mg/day) were switched to EPA (1,860 mg/day) and DHA (1,500 mg/day). The changes in their clinical parameters from 6 months before to 6 months after switching treatment were analyzed. Results The triglyceride levels did not change during treatment with EPA alone, but tended to decrease-although not to a statistically significant extent-after the switch. The patients’ low-density-lipoprotein cholesterol, blood pressure, proteinuria, and hematuria levels were similar before and after switching. The estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) tended to decrease during EPA therapy, but became stable after switching and the median %⊿eGFR changed from -7.354% during EPA therapy to +1.26% during the 6 months after switching to EPA and DHA therapy (p=0.00132), and renal the function remained stable for another 6 months. Moreover, the median %⊿eGFR during the 6 months after switching was significantly higher in comparison to IgAN patients who were treated with EPA alone as a control (-3.26%, p=0.0361). No clinical parameters were independently associated with a stable renal function without switching to DHA/EPA. Conclusion The addition of DHA to EPA stabilized the renal function of IgAN patients, and it seemed that there were pleiotropic effects beyond the improvement of the clinical parameters.

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