Rebecca Hasseli

• MD
• Medical Doctor at Universitätsklinikum Münster

Objectives To evaluate the combination of novel colour Doppler ultrasound (CDUS), greyscale ultrasound (GSUS), and oscillometric indices of macroangiopathy in patients with idiopathic inflammatory myopathies (IIM). Second, to explore the associations between these imaging markers and both patient-related and disease-related characteristics, as well...

At the beginning of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic in December 2019 there was no available evidence regarding the management of immunosuppressive or immunomodulatory treatment and the potential outcomes of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus type 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infections in inflammatory rheumatic diseases (IRD). As a re...

In dieser Ausgabe der 'Aktuellen Rheumatologie' werden verschiedene Infektionen im Kontext von entzündlich-rheumatischen Erkrankungen näher erläutert.

Zusammenfassung (Humanes Immundefizienz-Virus) HIV, Hepatitis B und C stellen weltweit häufige Infektionserkrankungen dar. Sie können nicht nur die Entwicklung von Immunphänomene begünstigen, sondern sind auch eine Herausforderung in der Therapie von entzündlich-rheumatischen Erkrankungen. Das Screening von Patientinnen und Patienten mit entzündlic...

Objectives To investigate, whether inflammatory rheumatic diseases (IRD) inpatients are at higher risk to develop a severe course of SARS-CoV-2 infections compared to the general population, data from the German COVID-19 registry for IRD patients and data from the Lean European Survey on SARS-CoV-2 (LEOSS) infected patients covering inpatients from...

Zusammenfassung Der Herpes Zoster ist eine häufige Viruserkrankung, die meist nach einer jahrzehntelangen Latenz durch eine Reaktivierung einer Varizella-Zoster-Primärinfektion auftritt. Besonders betroffen sind ältere Personen sowie solche mit geschwächtem Immunsystem. Während der akuten Phase zeigen sich dermatombezogene Schmerzen sowie ein papul...

Vasculitis, a group of systemic inflammatory diseases that affect the cardiovascular (CV) system, presents with a variety of clinical manifestations that depend on the size of the affected blood vessels. While some types of vasculitis reveal distinct symptoms, others are characterized by more diffuse and nonspecific presentations that can result in...

Objective Approximately one third of individuals worldwide have not received a COVID‐19 vaccine. Although studies have investigated risk factors linked to severe COVID‐19 among unvaccinated people with rheumatic diseases (RDs), we know less about whether these factors changed as the pandemic progressed. We aimed to identify risk factors associated...

Background Psoriatic arthritis (PsA) is a chronic inflammatory joint disease. It can result in severe joint destruction and cardiac or pulmonary involvement. So far, no specific autoantibodies have been identified that would simplify the diagnosis of PsA. HLA-B27 positivity is only detectable in 20% of PsA patients. It still takes several years unt...

Background Objectives To investigate whether the new bone formation (NBF) that is typical of psoriatic arthritis (PsA) can also be detected by ultrasound. In addition, we aimed to investigate whether the presence of NBF and specific autoantibodies could facilitate an earlier diagnosis of psoriatic arthritis. Methods Patients fulfilling the CASPAR...

Objective To analyse the clinical profile of SARS-CoV-2 breakthrough infections in at least double-vaccinated patients with inflammatory rheumatic diseases (IRDs). Methods Data from the physician-reported German COVID-19-IRD registry collected between February 2021 and July 2022 were analysed. SARS-CoV-2 cases were stratified according to patients...

Objectives To investigate factors associated with severe COVID-19 in people with psoriasis (PsO), psoriatic arthritis (PsA) and axial spondyloarthritis (axSpA). Methods Demographic data, clinical characteristics and COVID-19 outcome severity of adults with PsO, PsA and axSpA were obtained from two international physician-reported registries. A thr...

Nailfold capillaroscopy is a rapid and easily applicable differential diagnostic technique that allows direct visualization of the microcirculation. Abnormal findings in nailfold capillaroscopy are closely associated with connective tissue diseases, such as systemic sclerosis. The clinical manifestation of impaired microcirculation is Raynaud’s phe...

The lungs are a frequent site for the manifestation of systemic, neoplastic and immunological multiorgan diseases. In the clinical routine, patients frequently present with symptoms from the respiratory spectrum of disorders, such as dyspnea. After a clinical examination, lung function testing and imaging an initial pulmonary manifestation can ofte...

Background Pain occurs in the majority of patients with late onset Pompe disease (LOPD) and is associated with a reduced quality of life. The aim of this study was to analyse the pain characteristics and its relation to a small nerve fiber involvement in LOPD patients. Methods In 35 patients with LOPD under enzyme replacement therapy without clini...

Objectives To investigate factors associated with severe COVID-19 in people with idiopathic inflammatory myopathy (IIM). Methods Demographic data, clinical characteristics and COVID-19 outcome severity of adults with IIM were obtained from the COVID-19 Global Rheumatology Alliance physician-reported registry. A 3-point ordinal COVID-19 severity sc...

Objective: To describe people with gout who were diagnosed with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and hospitalized and to characterize their outcomes. Methods: Data on patients with gout hospitalized for COVID-19 between March 12, 2020, and October 25, 2021, were extracted from the COVID-19 Global Rheumatology Alliance registry. Descriptive st...

Anti-synthetase syndrome (ASyS)-associated myositis is a major subgroup of the idiopathic inflammatory myopathies (IIM) and is characterized by disease chronicity with musculoskeletal, dermatological and pulmonary manifestations. One of eight autoantibodies against the aminoacyl-transferase RNA synthetases (ARS) is detectable in the serum of affect...

Objective: Some patients with rheumatic diseases might be at higher risk for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). We aimed to develop a prediction model for COVID-19 ARDS in this population and to create a simple risk score calculator for use in clinical settings. Methods: Data were derived from the COV...

Background Differences in the distribution of individual-level clinical risk factors across regions do not fully explain the observed global disparities in COVID-19 outcomes. We aimed to investigate the associations between environmental and societal factors and country-level variations in mortality attributed to COVID-19 among people with rheumati...

Background SARS-CoV-2 vaccines offer the most effective way to reduce the risk of severe COVID-19. Recent data indicate sufficient immune response after vaccination in most patients with inflammatory rheumatic diseases (IRD) on immunomodulatory treatments. Objectives To investigate the clinical profile of SARS-CoV-2 breakthrough infections among d...

Background Some factors associated with severe COVID-19 outcomes have been identified in patients with psoriasis (PsO) and inflammatory/autoimmune rheumatic diseases, namely older age, male sex, comorbidity burden, higher disease activity, and certain medications such as rituximab. However, information about specificities of patients with PsO, psor...

Background At the beginning of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, the influence of anti-inflammatory therapy on the course of SARS-CoV-2 infection in patients with inflammatory rheumatic diseases (IRD) was unknown. In the meantime, several data indicate an association of severe courses...

Background There is a paucity of data in the literature about the outcome of patients with idiopathic inflammatory myopathy (IIM) who have been infected with SARS-CoV-2. Objectives To investigate factors associated with severe COVID-19 outcomes in patients with IIM. Methods Data on demographics, number of comorbidities, region, COVID-19 time peri...

Background: Patients with neuromuscular diseases (NMD) are classified as risk groups for a potentially severe course of a SARS-CoV-2 infection. An online registry (www.covid19-nme.com) was developed to gather information about the severity of COVID19, a potential progression of NMD through the SARS-CoV-2 infection and the possible influence of medi...

Nailfold capillaroscopy is a rapid and easily applicable differential diagnostic technique that allows direct visualization of the microcirculation. Abnormal findings in nailfold capillaroscopy are closely associated with connective tissue diseases, such as systemic sclerosis. The clinical manifestation of impaired microcirculation is Raynaud’s phe...

Aim To determine characteristics associated with more severe outcomes in a global registry of people with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and COVID-19. Methods People with SLE and COVID-19 reported in the COVID-19 Global Rheumatology Alliance registry from March 2020 to June 2021 were included. The ordinal outcome was defined as: (1) not hospit...

BACKGROUND: Patients with primary systemic vasculitis or polymyalgia rheumatica might be at a high risk for poor COVID-19 outcomes due to the treatments used, the potential organ damage cause by primary systemic vasculitis, and the demographic factors associated with these conditions. We therefore aimed to investigate factors associated with COVID-...

The objective is to evaluate the attitude of rheumatologists regarding the use of COVID-19 vaccination in patients with inflammatory rheumatic diseases (IRDs). From February 2nd until March 15th, 2021, rheumatologists from Germany were asked to participate anonymously in a survey addressing their attitude with respect to COVID-19 vaccinations of IR...

Background Patients with primary systemic vasculitis or polymyalgia rheumatica might be at a high risk for poor COVID-19 outcomes due to the treatments used, the potential organ damage cause by primary systemic vasculitis, and the demographic factors associated with these conditions. We therefore aimed to investigate factors associated with COVID-1...

Was ist neu? COVID-19 bei Patienten mit entzündlich-rheumatischen Erkrankungen Eine erhöhte Entzündungsaktivität bei Patienten mit entzündlich-rheumatischen Erkrankungen ist mit schwereren COVID-19-Verläufen assoziiert. Der Einsatz von Glukokortikoiden (mehr als 5 mg Prednisolon/Tag) kann einen schwereren Verlauf von COVID-19 begünstigen. Glukokort...

Importance: Although tumor necrosis factor (TNF) inhibitors are widely prescribed globally because of their ability to ameliorate shared immune pathways across immune-mediated inflammatory diseases (IMIDs), the impact of COVID-19 among individuals with IMIDs who are receiving TNF inhibitors remains insufficiently understood. Objective: To examin...

Introduction: Several risk factors for severe COVID-19 specific for patients with inflammatory rheumatic and musculoskeletal diseases (RMDs) have been identified so far. Evidence regarding the influence of different RMD treatments on outcomes of SARS-CoV-2 infection is still poor. Methods: Data from the German COVID-19-RMD registry collected bet...

Background: Pulmonary affection (PA) is associated with a substantial increase in morbidity and mortality in patients with idiopathic inflammatory myopathies (IIM). However, the underlying immune mechanisms of PA remain enigmatic and prompt deeper immunological analyses. Importantly, the Janus-faced role of natural killer (NK) cells, capable of pro...

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a degenerative joint disease characterized by cartilage loss and reduced joint function. OA risk factors are age and obesity. Many adipokines are altered by obesity but also OA although systemic adipokine regulation in OA is not always clear. Therefore, metabolic effects of diet-induced obesity on OA development as well as th...

Zusammenfassung Durch das COVID-19-Register ( www.covid19-rheuma.de ) der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Rheumatologie erfolgte erstmalig die Erfassung und systematische Evaluation einer viralen Infektion bei Patienten mit entzündlich rheumatischen Erkrankungen (ERE). Hierdurch war und ist eine schnelle Generierung von wissenschaftlichen Daten möglich,...

The question whether an ongoing treatment with methotrexate (MTX) actually impairs the protective immune response after SARS-CoV‑2 vaccination cannot be answered with certainty on the basis of the available data. However, in view of the fact that a short discontinuation (once or twice) of the weekly MTX treatment in patients with a stable disease s...

Background The current pandemic constitutes an entirely new situation for patients as well as physicians. The insecurity of the early phase, shutdowns, increasing infection rate and appearing SARS-CoV2 mutations have created a situation that makes live difficult especially for chronic diseases i.e. patients with rheumatic and musculoskeletal diseas...

Background In rheumatic and musculoskeletal diseases (RMDs), peripheral neurons can be affected, which can result in sensory symptoms like pain, burning, tingling, numbness and motor symptoms like muscle-atrophy or even paresis. More detailed knowledge about the prevalence and the cause of neuropathy (NP) in RMD are urgently needed, especially as R...

Background Patients with rheumatic and musculoskeletal diseases (RMD) might have an increased risk for infection due to their immunomodulatory treatment, secondary to their disease and comorbidities. Recent studies suggest a decreased risk of severe COVID-19 in RMD-patients treated with biologics. Objectives The aim of this study was to assess cou...

Background One of the key mechanisms in the pathogenesis of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is the interaction of macrophages and synovial fibroblasts during joint inflammation. Increased synergistic proinflammatory activity of both cell types leads to the release of high levels of proinflammatory cytokines, especially of interleukin-6 (IL-6), and of mat...

Objective To investigate baseline use of biologic or targeted synthetic (b/ts) disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs) and COVID-19 outcomes in rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Methods We analysed the COVID-19 Global Rheumatology Alliance physician registry (from 24 March 2020 to 12 April 2021). We investigated b/tsDMARD use for RA at the clinica...

Objectives: Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and spondyloarthritis (SpA) are the most common inflammatory rheumatic diseases (IRD). The aim of this study was to elucidate differences in the outcome of SARS-CoV-2 infection in RA- and SpA-patients. Methods: Data from the German COVID-19 registry for IRD patients from 30th March to 16th November 2020 were...

Objectives To evaluate the influence of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic on the adherence of patients with inflammatory rheumatic diseases (IRD) to their immunomodulatory medication during the three-months lockdown in Germany. Methods From March 16th until June 15th 2020, IRD patients from private practices and rheumatology departments were asked to answe...

Objectives To evaluate the influence of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic on the adherence of patients with inflammatory rheumatic diseases (IRD) to their immunomodulatory medication during the three-months lockdown in Germany. Methods From March 16th until June 15th 2020, IRD patients from private practices and rheumatology departments were asked to answer...

Objectives To determine factors associated with COVID-19-related death in people with rheumatic diseases. Methods Physician-reported registry of adults with rheumatic disease and confirmed or presumptive COVID-19 (from 24 March to 1 July 2020). The primary outcome was COVID-19-related death. Age, sex, smoking status, comorbidities, rheumatic disea...

Adipokines are adipose tissue-derived factors not only playing an important role in metabolism but also influencing other central processes of the body, such as inflammation. In autoimmune diseases, adipokines are involved in inflammatory pathways affecting different cell types. Many rheumatic diseases belong to the group of autoimmune diseases, fo...

Introduction Whether patients with inflammatory rheumatic and musculoskeletal diseases (RMD) are at higher risk to develop severe courses of COVID-19 has not been fully elucidated. Aim of this analysis was to describe patients with RMD according to their COVID-19 severity and to identify risk factors for hospitalisation. Methods Patients with RMD...

Objectives Patients with inflammatory rheumatic diseases (IRD) infected with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) may be at risk to develop a severe course of COVID-19. The influence of immunomodulating drugs on the course of COVID-19 is unknown. To gather knowledge about SARS-CoV-2 infections in patients with IRD, we establ...

Background: Endothelial cells from the microvasculature (hBMEC) of the brain show significant morphological and functional differences compared to EC from other anatomical areas. They are characterized by tight junctions, are not fenestrated and show less active transport mechanisms. On the other hand, the mitochondrial density is relatively high i...

Objective: The long-distance migration of rheumatoid arthritis synovial fibroblasts (RASFs) in the severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID) mouse model of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) suggests that an interaction between RASFs and endothelial cells (EC) is critical in this process. Our objective was to assess whether immunomodulatory factors such as ad...

Background Endothelial cells from the microvasculature (hBMEC) of the brain show significant morphological and functional differences compared to EC from other anatomical areas. They are characterized by tight junctions, are not fenestrated and show less active transport mechanisms. On the other hand, the mitochondrial density is relatively high in...

Background Patients with inflammatory rheumatic diseases (IRD) and infection with SARS-CoV-2 may be at risk to develop a severe course of COVID-19. To gather knowledge about SARS-CoV-2 infections in IRD patients, a national registry was established to elucidate IRD specific profiles of COVID-19. Objectives To identify risk factors for hospitalisat...

The current COVID-19 pandemic inherits an unprecedented challenge for the treating rheumatologists. On the one hand, antirheumatic drugs can increase the risk of infection and potentially deteriorate the course of an infection. On the other hand, an active inflammatory rheumatic disease can also increase the risk for an infection. In the recommenda...

Einstellung von Patienten mit entzündlich-rheumatischen Erkrankungen zur immunsuppressiven Therapie im Rahmen der COVID-19 Pandemie-eine Situationsanalyse Seit 11.03.2020 spricht die WHO von ei-ner Coronavirus Pandemie. Verursacht wird die Coronavirus Krankheit (CO-VID-19) durch das SARS-CoV-2 Virus. Die Erkrankung manifestiert sich als In-fektion...

Zusammenfassung Eine interdisziplinäre Zusammenarbeit ist in der medizinischen Versorgung chronisch erkrankter Patienten mit komplexen Erkrankungen erforderlich. Vor allem im Bereich der internistischen Rheumatologie ist eine interdisziplinäre Arbeit unerlässlich, um die komplexen somatischen und psychosozialen Aspekte einer chronischen Erkrankung...

Obesity—in which free fatty acid (FFA) levels are chronically elevated—is a known risk factor for different rheumatic diseases, and obese patients are more likely to develop osteoarthritis (OA) also in non-weight-bearing joints. These findings suggest that FFA may also play a role in inflammation-related joint damage and bone loss in rheumatoid art...

Background: Activin A and follistatin exhibit immunomodulatory functions, thus affecting autoinflammatory processes as found in rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The impact of both proteins on the behavior of synovial fibroblasts (SF) in RA as well as in osteoarthritis (OA) is unknown. Methods: Immunohistochemical analyses of synovial tissue for expres...

Background The Janus kinase inhibitors (JAKi) peficitinib and filgotinib are currently examined in clinical trials for treatment of rheumatoid arthritis. Both inhibitors are well tolerated up to doses causing Cmax values higher than 1 µM [1,2]. This is in contrast to the approved dosages of tofacitinib and baricitinib reaching Cmax values below 0.5...

Background The spleen tyrosine kinase (syk) is an intracellular protein kinase involved in signal transmission processes of immune cells and non-hematopoietic cells, such as fibroblasts. Various syk-inhibitors are therefore currently being tested in preclinical and clinical studies, e.g. for the treatment of different types of cancer as well as aut...

Background: Synovial fibroblasts (SF) play a major role in the pathogenesis of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and develop an aggressive phenotype destroying cartilage and bone, thus termed RASF. JAK inhibitors have shown to be an efficient therapeutic option in RA treatment, but less is known about the effect of JAK inhibitors on activated RASF. The aim...

Career situation of first and presenting author Post-doctoral fellow. Introduction Tofacitinib and baricitinib are the first approved Janus kinase inhibitors (JAKi) in Europe for treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Other JAKi differing in the inhibition profile of the four isoforms JAK1, JAK2, JAK3 and TYK2 are currently examined in clinical t...

Chronic inflammation, synovial hyperplasia, and local hypoxia lead to synovial cell activation causing severe joint damage in chronic-inflammatory rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The proinflammatory and joint-destructive property of the increased release of extracellular nucleic acids has been demonstrated for extracellular mitochondrial DNA and oxidize...

Leukocytes travel within the circulation and enter connective tissues by interactions with endothelium of postcapillary venules mediated by cell adhesion molecules, summarized as leukocyte adhesion cascade. In the SCID‐mouse‐model, rheumatoid arthritis (RA) synovial fibroblasts (SF) migrated to distant cartilage through the vasculature. Therefore,...

Tetraspanins function as membrane adaptors altering cell-cell fusion, antigen presentation, receptor-mediated signal transduction and cell motility via interaction with membrane proteins including other tetraspanins and adhesion molecules such as integrins. CD82 is expressed in several malignant cells and well described as tumour metastasis suppres...

Background With the approval of the Janus kinase inhibitors (JAKi) Tofacitinib and Baricitinib for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) in the European Union (EU), the opportunities for a successful therapy were extended by a new substance class. Other JAKi like Peficitinib and Filgotinib are currently examined in clinical trials. Peficitinib...

Background Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic polyarticular inflammatory disease, in which RA synovial fibroblasts (SF) play a key role. These cells are able to migrate long distances in vivo via the vasculature as previously shown in our SCID mouse migration model. Adipose tissue, as an endocrine organ, plays an important role in inflammatory...

Background and objectives Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) is a chronic polyarticular inflammatory disease. Adipose tissue, as an endocrine organ, also plays an important in inflammatory processes. RA synovial fibroblasts (SF) are able to migrate long distances in vivo via the vasculature as shown in a mouse model. Here, we analysed the role of adipokines...

Background As an endocrine organ, adipose tissue plays a crucial role in inflammatory processes. These can be mediated by adipokines, important factors secreted by adipose tissue, displaying pro- or anti-inflammatory effects. Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic inflammatory joint disease, in which joints are consecutively affected. We previously...