The role of cryoglobulins and immune complexes in vasculitis.

Immune complexes play a major role in a variety of diseases such as lupus and rheumatoid arthritis. Cryoglobulins, especially those of the mixed type, represent a type of immune complex that is particularly easy to isolate, and hence lend themselves readily to the identification of the responsible precipitating agents. This report presents the clinical, laboratory, and pathologic features of 40 patients with mixed cryoglobulinemia and offers some speculation based on currently available evidence on the role of cryoglobulins in pathogenesis.