Table 1.
Selected characteristics of the study participants
| Active stage of GPA | Remission | Control | |
|---|---|---|---|
| n | 26 | 29 | 31 |
| Age (mean ± s.d.) | 56·1 ± 13·2 | 53·2 ± 13·1 | 52·1 ± 12·3 |
| Gender (F/M) | 14/12 | 16/13 | 16/15 |
| BVAS (min–max) VDI | 6–32 | 0 | – |
| VDI (min–max) | 0–5 | 1–7 | – |
| GC treatment (yes/no) | 15/11 | 25/4 | – |
| GC dose (mg/day) (min–max) | 3–20 | 2–8 | – |
| CYC cumulative dose† | 0–33 | 10–25 | – |
| IgG anti‐PR3 (RU/ml) (min‐max) | 20–200 | < 20–140 | < 20 |
| CRP (mg/ml) | < 5·0–130 | < 5·0–6·9 | < 5·0 |
| Procalcitonin (ng/ml) | < 0·05 | < 0·05 | < 0·05 |
| PBMC (103/µl) | 10·9 ± 3·8* | 8·3 ± 1·9 | 6·2 ± 3·5 |
| PMN (103/µl) | 7·69 ± 4·8* | 5·8 ± 2·5 | 3·9 ± 2·6 |
| PLT (103/µl) | 255 ± 231·6* | 221·6 ± 70·9* | 209·9 ± 33·5 |
| LDH U/l | 550 ± 156 | 506 ± 226 | 360 ± 48 |
BVAS = Birmingham Vasculitis Activity Score; VDI = Vasculitis Damage Index, * P < 0·05 in comparison with controls; GC = glucocorticosteroids; GPA = granulomatosis with polyangiitis; PBMC = peripheral blood mononuclear cells; CRP = C‐reactive protein; PMN = polymorphonuclear cells; PLT = platelet; Ig = immunoglobulin; s.d. = standard deviation. Platelet count results presented as median and interquartile range. †Nine patients in the active‐GPA group were treated with cyclophosphamide (cumulative dose 25 g [9, 32]); all patients with inactive‐GPA previously received cyclophosphamide.