Vasculitis special issue

Abstract

It is my pleasure to see that the long awaited special issue of IJRD on “Vasculitis” is ready for publication following our earlier special issue on “Lupus in in Asia-Pacific region” and another issue with a special section on Kawasaki’s disease. The topics of this special issue were chosen keeping their relevance in the Asia-Pacific region in mind. Professor Aman Sharma, the guest editor for this vasculitis issue has again given priorities to the specific vasculitic disorders prevalent in the Asia-Pacific region, as well as emphasizing the uniqueness of various vaculitic disorders in our region. In this regard, we also have decided to specially highlight Takayasu arteritis. Mikito Takayasu was born in Saga Prefecture in Kyushu, Japan in 1860. He graduated from Tokyo Imperial Medical School in 1887. He studied ophthalmology in Germany fsrom 1899 to 1901 and was installed as a professor of the Department of Ophthalmology at Medical School of Kanazawa University in 1901. In 1908, Mikito Takayasu reported a 22-year-old woman as a case of “strange change of blood vessels in the center of the retina”. He recorded the absence of the pulses of the radial artery. In 1951, Kentaro Shimizu et al. amassed 25 cases and reported them under the name of “pulseless disease”. Hideo Ueda et al. renamed the disease as “aortitis syndrome”. In the 2012 Chapel Hill Consensus Conference, the name of the disease was changed to Takayasu arteritis. Dr. Takayasu retired in 1924 from Kanazawa University. Later, Professor Paul Bacon is also specially remembered, who helped us by mentoring and devising the ITAS-2010 and ITAS-A score for assessing disease in Takayasu arteritis. We dedicate this special issue in his memory for his great contribution. I specially thank Professor Masayoshi Harigai and Professor Yoshikazu Wakaoka from Japan for providing me with pictures of Professor Takayasu. I also thank Professor Kevin Pile, the incoming Editor-in-Chief of IJRD for providing support, including some pictures of the late Professor Paul Bacon in his younger days. I trust this issue will go a long way in updating our knowledge in vasculitis.