Marisa Wexler, MS, senior science writer —

The European Commission has approved Pharming‘s Ruconest (conestat alfa) for the treatment of acute swelling episodes in young children with hereditary angioedema (HAE). This approval expands the age range for Ruconest, which previously was approved to treat adults and adolescents with HAE in the European Union…

Mutations in the KCNMA1 gene may predispose certain people to angioedema caused by blood pressure medications, a study suggests. The study, “Genome-wide association study of angioedema induced by angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor and angiotensin receptor blocker treatment,” was published in The Pharmacogenomics Journal. Angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors…

A new diagnostic test for hereditary angioedema (HAE) can measure the activity of C1-inhibitor (C1-INH) in a drop of dried blood, and may be easy enough to use at point-of-care medical centers. The test was described in Clinica Chimica Acta, in the study “A…

Bradykinin, a key molecular player involved in swelling attacks in hereditary angioedema patients, does so by signaling through the cyclooxygenase (COX) proteins, which may be targeted with common anti-inflammatory medications such as ibuprofen and diclofenac, a study has found. By uncovering additional molecules participating in…

In Italy, people with hereditary angioedema (HAE) types 1 or 2 are not at an increased risk of premature death relative to the general population, and swelling that blocks the airway is not the main cause of death, a new study has found. The study, “Life…

Researchers have developed a new tool that measures disease activity specifically in people with hereditary angioedema due to C1-inhibitor deficiency (C1-INH-HAE), which could prove useful in the medical care of patients and for assessing outcomes in clinical trials. The Hereditary Angioedema Activity Score (HAE-AS) was described in the…

Researchers developed a questionnaire, called the Angioedema Control Test (AECT), that may be helpful in monitoring disease control and patient-reported outcomes among people with recurrent angioedema. The tool is described in the journal Allergy, in the study, “Development of the Angioedema Control Test (AECT) – A Patient…

A Thai version of the Angioedema Quality of Life (AE-QoL) questionnaire is a reliable way to measure health-related quality of life in Asian people with recurrent angioedema, a new study demonstrates. The study, “Angioedema quality of life questionnaire (AE-QoL) – interpretability and sensitivity to change,” was…

A genetic technique called allelic discrimination — which detects a specific variant of the F12 gene — might make diagnosing certain hereditary angioedema-causing mutations quicker and cheaper, a new study showed. Titled “A cost-effective algorithm for diagnosis of hereditary angioedema with normal C1 inhibitor:…

Researchers have developed a new rat model of hereditary angioedema (HAE) that more closely mimics the swelling episodes experienced by humans, which might improve studies about the mechanisms that cause the disease. The model has been described in a new paper, “Endothelial B2-receptor overexpression as an…