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Obesity and Low Back Pain
EurekAlert!
A large patient population study finds weight gain, increases risk for low back pain - the risk increased 7% for every BMI unit or 10 pounds over ideal weight.
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Reefer Madness (12.12.2025)
Dr. Jack Cush reviews the news, journal and regulatory reports from this past week on RheumNow.com. B cell drugs in SLE and ITP, biomarkers in GCA & PSS and great videos by APPs.
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Medical Cannabis for Pain Management
Recent research and publications have underscored the use, efficacy, safety and limitations to the use of cannabis for arthritis and pain patients.
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Poor sleep increases risk of #RA. English Longitudinal Study of Ageing. RA risk was signif. higher in those with moderate sleep quality (SQ) (HR 1.23) or poor SQ (HR 1.50), cmpared to good SQ. Partly mediated by depression https://t.co/kTbCUHeIGi https://t.co/6CD5tsKDdA
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Most inhibition of inflammation is via the brain. More GLP1 and GIP1 receptors are in the brain, more than the gut. @RWCSmtg #RWCS26 https://t.co/CNzUqteBLg
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Study of 90 adolescents (46 w. Juvenile fibromyalgia (JFM) & 44 controls) finds that JFM pts have greater sensitivity to non-painful sensory stimuli, such as sounds and bright lights; such hypersensitivity is closely related to the severity of the disease and brain function https://t.co/KGqzRK6e4a
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Factors that may augment future development of SLE - includes Vitamin D levels, poor sleep, EBV reactivation & social determinants of health. Can you Prevent SLE? Dr. David Karp lecturing at UTSW @drdavidkarp @utswrheum https://t.co/2J1JBjeXKU
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Factors that may augment future development of SLE - includes Vitamin D levels, poor sleep, EBV reactivation & social determinants of health. Can you Prevent SLE? Dr. David Karp lecturing at UTSW @drdavidkarp @utswrheum https://t.co/e3TKATcxXB
Dr. John Cush RheumNow ( View Tweet)
Study of 286 RA pt finds comorbidity burden—particularly psychological comorbidity—was strongly associated with poorer HRQoL and greater management difficulty in RA. https://t.co/F90S55DaI6 https://t.co/4Hw1yTUgP5
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Longitudinal study of 1761 US military service pre- & post-deployment. The prevalence of fibromyalgia in Males/Females was 2.%/2% (sames as civilians) but post-deploy incr to 8%/11% (P < 0.001). PTSD incr from 21% /18% to 23%/26%. PTSD predeployment lead to a 3 fold risk of FM. https://t.co/XTjuhjx0zd
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DARWIN study ADHD med use among children and adults in Europe (Belgium, Germany, Netherlands, Spain, UK) more than doubled betw 2010 to 2023. IN UK use went up 20X in females, 15X males. (Ed. note: ADHD meds-->poor sleep-->fibromyalgia-->MSK pains) https://t.co/KlvUF1vhhj https://t.co/yEWXwM0WBL
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What Is Restless Legs Syndrome? JAMA Patient Education handout. https://t.co/fCqArVxrSu https://t.co/WjFNWyr9Q2
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“We will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.”
- Martin Luther King, Jr.
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Review of Restless Legs Syndrome
JAMA has published a full review of RLS - restless leg syndrome - a frequent, but often unrecognized, cause of poor sleep and the resultant hazards of insomnia.
https://t.co/lPSMH3v7xS https://t.co/lbSfeNrfLz
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What Is Restless Legs Syndrome? JAMA Patient Education handout. https://t.co/fCqArVxrSu https://t.co/xjl0PTdgsu
Dr. John Cush RheumNow ( View Tweet)
Comorbidity and Health Management: Tuesday Night Rheumatology Join panelists Vanessa Hill, NP-C, Lindsay Tom, PA-C, Barb Slusher, MSW, PA-C and Jack Cush, MD as they discuss comorbidity and health management in rheumatic disease. https://t.co/3KMgBW1Q4W https://t.co/4dVfKd7uy5
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APP Pearls “You must assess sleep and mood- without this, even if you control all inflammation, you will not control pain and fatigue!” - Christine Stamatos, NP, DNP, RN
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APP QD Clinic: Difficult AxSpA
Philip Mease, MD and Christy Vath, PA-C, Seattle discuss a difficult to treat axial spondyloarthritis (axSpA) case. This APP QD clinic is presented as part of RheumNow's "Mission: APP Partners in Care" campaign during the month of December. https://t.co/VY0O26l7XC
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QD Clinic: Weakness with Fibromyalgia
ack Cush, MD and Leilani Law, APN, Dallas, TX, discuss a case about weakness with fibromyalgia and how to best treat the complaints she presents with. This APP QD clinic is presented as part of RheumNow's "Mission: APP Partners in Care" https://t.co/OHeTdemtra
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2018 NHANES population survey of 28,040 individuals, 4168 (14.32%) identified with sleep disorders, and 1589 (4.28%) had #RA. Thus, sleep disorders were significantly associated with increased odds of RA (OR = 1.76, 95% CI: 1.46–2.13, P < 0.001). https://t.co/9O2MsLvwVe https://t.co/cBsm8Jt8Ks
Dr. John Cush RheumNow ( View Tweet)
