The Faculty of Medicine at Kasr al-Aini in Cairo University have diagnosed the first ever case of the rare autoimmune disease ‘VEXAS’ in Egypt and the Middle East, thanks to the efforts of a specialized medical team in the Chest Diseases Department led by the head of the Department, Yousry Aql.
VEXAS is a rare autoimmune disease that attacks the immune system and leads to a defect in the production of a vital enzyme, which leads to inflammation in the blood, bone marrow, lungs, and joints and affects the heart muscle.
Aql revealed that the case that was diagnosed is the first of its kind in Egypt and the Middle East, and was of a 72-year-old patient who frequently complained of all the previous symptoms and did not respond to medications and antibiotics.
He also explained that VEXAS is an abbreviation for a group of clinical signs of the patient and not a genetic disease, noting that it is more common in men and affects those over 50 years of age.
Aql added that its symptoms are recurrent infections throughout the body, high fever for long periods, inflammation of the cartilage of the larynx and recurrent infections in the lungs may occur, with the possibility of a rash and anemia.
The announcement of this achievement came during the annual conference of the Chest Diseases Department, organized by the faculty, where the university president praised the new medical achievement.
The Dean of the Faculty of Medicine at Kasr al-Ainy, and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Hospitals, Hossam Salah, noted that the “Kasr Al-Ainy Innovation Center” will be a platform to support advanced research in areas such as artificial intelligence and modern technologies for treating diseases.
He also announced the Faculty’s issuance of a new scientific journal specialized in disaster and emergency medicine in cooperation with Springer Nature and the Egyptian Knowledge Bank.
