Neopterin in Autoimmune Rheumatic Diseases

Neopterin concentrations in body fluids allow to monitor the activation status of the cellular ( =Thl-type) llnmune system in an easy but also sensitive way. Autoimmune disease result from deterioration of almost .1,1 immune system compartments. Rheumatic disorders comprise an important group of diseases featuring several aspects of autoimmune disorders. Already several years ago increased neopterin concentrations were Jemonstrated in patients with rheumatoid arthritis and later on in patients with systemic lupus erythemarosus. Neopterin concentrations were fowld to correlate with the activity of the diseases and to conveniently indicate effects of therapy. Similar data were obtained in patients with acute rheumatic fever, and more recently, the utility of neopterin determination was also demonstrated in patients with Wegeners granulomatosis and with polymytositis/dermatomyositis. In this article we intend to summarize the current knowledge about the usefulness of neopterin measurements in patients with rheumatic diseases