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Abstract: FR-PO705

Unprecedented Rise in ANCA Vasculitis: Unveiling Patterns, Phenotypes, and Etiological Factors

Session Information

Category: Glomerular Diseases

  • 1401 Glomerular Diseases: From Inflammation to Fibrosis

Authors

  • Lavery, Grace, Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Preston, United Kingdom
  • Floyd, Lauren, Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Preston, United Kingdom
  • Storrar, Joshua, Northern Care Alliance NHS Foundation Trust, Salford, Manchester, United Kingdom
  • Dhaygude, Ajay Prabhakar, Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Preston, United Kingdom
Background

There has been a perceived increase in the incidence of patients presenting with ANCA associated vasculitis (AAV). We aim to quantify the extent of this increase and identify trends and associations.

Methods

The incidence of newly diagnosed AAV was observed from two renal centres in the North West of England from 1st January to 30th April 2023. Retrospective data collection included demographics, serology, AAV phenotype and COVID-19 vaccination status. This data was compared to previous annual incidence rates of AAV diagnosis.

Results

A total of 25 new AAV patients were diagnosed across the two centres. The mean age was 56 and there was a slight male predominance (Fig. 1). Nineteen new cases from centre one suggests a greater than four-fold increase in the incidence of AAV, as compared to data averages from the same centre for the previous decade (Fig. 2). 62.5% of centre one patients had received ≥2 viral vector vaccines for COVID-19, whereas 83.3% of the centre two cohort received mRNA vaccines.

Conclusion

Our data shows a significant increase in AAV this year at one centre. More diagnoses were of the MPA phenotype, contradicting previous studies suggesting a higher prevalence of GPA in northern Europe.
Possible explanations for the increase include autoimmune responses triggered by viral illnesses and COVID-19 vaccinations. Although not statistically significant, our data suggests a link between viral vector vaccines for COVID-19 and increased AAV incidence. Environmental factors such as air pollution have also been associated with higher autoimmune risk. The rising incidence necessitates further research into the cause and raises questions about service provision, health promotion and management.

Fig. 1: Data from 1 January to 30 April 2023

Fig. 2: New AAV diagnoses over the last decade