Polyarteritis Nodosa

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Important

It is possible that the main title of the report Polyarteritis Nodosa is not the name you expected. Please check the synonyms listing to find the alternate name(s) and disorder subdivision(s) covered by this report.

Synonyms

• PAN
• Periarteritis
• Polyarteritis
• Periartiritis nodosa
• Polyarteritis nodosa

Disorder Subdivisions

• None

General Discussion

Polyarteritis nodosa is a rare multi-system disorder characterized by widespread inflammation, weakening, and damage to small and medium-sized arteries. Blood vessels in any organ or organ system may be affected, including those supplying the kidneys, heart, intestine, nervous system, and/or skeletal muscles. Damage to affected arteries may result in abnormally increased blood pressure (hypertension), "ballooning" (aneurysm) of an arterial wall, the formation of blood clots (thrombosis), obstruction of blood supply to certain tissues, and/or tissue damage and loss (necrosis) in certain affected areas.



The disorder is more common among men, and is more likely to present during early middle age, between 40 and 50 years.



Although the exact cause of polyarteritis nodosa is not known, it is clear that an attack may be triggered by any of several drugs or vaccines or by a reaction to infections (either bacterial or viral) such as strep or staph infections or hepatitis B virus. Many researchers suspect that the disorder is due to disturbances of the body’s immune system. Confirming the diagnosis required either a biopsy showing small or medium sized arteries with alternating areas of stenosis (constriction or block) and dilation.

Resources

Vasculitis Foundation

P.O. Box 28660

Kansas City, MO 64188

USA

Tel: 8164368211

Fax: 8164368211

Tel: 8002779474

Email: vf@vasculitisfoundation.org

Internet: http://www.vasculitisfoundation.org



American Autoimmune Related Diseases Association, Inc.

22100 Gratiot Avenue

Eastpointe, MI 48021-2227

Tel: (586)776-3900

Fax: (586)776-3903

Tel: (800)598-4668

Email: aarda@aarda.org

Internet: http://www.aarda.org/



NIH/National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases

6610 Rockledge Drive

MSC 6612

Bethesda, MD 20892-6612

Tel: (301)496-5717

Fax: (301)402-3573

TDD: (800)877-8339

Internet: http://www.niaid.nih.gov/



CNS Vasculitis Foundation

9930 Morningfield

San Antonio, TX 78250-3743

USA

Tel: 2105238234

Email: pamela@cnsvf.org

Internet: http://www.cnsvf.org



Jack Miller Center for Peripheral Neuropathy

University of Chicago

5841 S. Maryland Ave, MC 2030

Chicago, IL 60637

Tel: (773)702-5800

Fax: (773)702-5577

Email: information-millercenter@neurology.bsd.uchicago.edu

Internet: http://millercenter.uchicago.edu



Autoimmune Information Network, Inc

PO Box 4121

Brick, NJ 08723

Tel: (732)262-0450

Fax: (732)262-0450

Email: autoimmunehelp@aol.com

Internet: http://www.aininc.org



European Society for Immunodeficiencies (ESID)

c/o Dr. Esther de Vries

Jeroen Bosch Hospital

Dept. Paediatrics

P.O. Box 90153

Hertogenbosch, 5200 ME's

Netherlands

Tel: +31 73-6992965

Fax: +31 73-6992948

Email: info@esid.org

Internet: http://www.esid.org



AutoImmunity Community



Tel: (919)-55-2-9057

Email: bandrews@autoimmunitycommunity.org

Internet: http://autoimmunitycommunity.org

For a Complete Report

This is an abstract of a report from the National Organization for Rare Disorders, Inc. ® (NORD). A copy of the complete report can be obtained for a small fee by visiting the NORD website. The complete report contains additional information including symptoms, causes, affected population, related disorders, standard and investigational treatments (if available), and references from medical literature. For a full-text version of this topic, see http://www.rarediseases.org/search/rdblist.html

The information provided in this report is not intended for diagnostic purposes. It is provided for informational purposes only. NORD recommends that affected individuals seek the advice or counsel of their own personal physicians.

It is possible that the title of this topic is not the name you selected. Please check the Synonyms listing to find the alternate name(s) and Disorder Subdivision(s) covered by this report.

This disease entry is based upon medical information available through the date at the end of the topic. Since NORD's resources are limited, it is not possible to keep every entry in the Rare Disease Database completely current and accurate. Please check with the agencies listed in the Resources section for the most current information about this disorder.

For additional information and assistance about rare disorders, please contact the National Organization for Rare Disorders at P.O. Box 1968, Danbury, CT 06813-1968; phone (203) 744-0100; web site www.rarediseases.org or email orphan@rarediseases.org

Last Updated:  11/14/2008

Copyright  1989, 1993, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2005, 2007,2008 National Organization for Rare Disorders, Inc.

Last updated:	November 14, 2008