A famous quote from Verna Wright, MD,states, “Clinicians may all too easily spend years writing“doing well” in the notes of a patient who has become progressively crippled before their eyes".

There’s a certain comfort to work that is rote, mechanistic and almost automatic.

A study published in the BMJ Christmas issue shows only 13% of academic positions at US medical schools are held by women. Sadly, and strangely, even the uncommon subset, men with moustaches, outnumbered (20%) the women in academic leadership spots. 

Here's what you may have missed: in November 2015, RheumNow published 80 tweets on news, research and teaching points that impact the rheumatology community. We had a reach (impressions) of 79,100, 79 mentions, and over 3399 visits to RheumNow.com to check out what we publish.

The management of psoriatic disease, including psoriatic arthritis (PsA) has evolved significantly in the last decade.  Nevertheless, there are still some uncertainties - such as what the role of methotrexate should be, and when to use newer and novel therapies.

A famous quote from Verna Wright, MD, states, “Clinicians may all too easily spend years writing“doing well” in the notes of a patient who has become progressively crippled before their eyes".

Burnout among U.S. doctors affects more than half of practicing physicians, according to a new study published in Mayo Clinic Proceedings. (Citation source http://buff.ly/1RpV8Q0)

The following is a compilation of abstracts presented at the 2015 Annual ACR meeting in San Francisco. These were chosen on the basis of impact, quality and safety message.

A biosimilar of etanercept (Enbrel) made by the South Korean company Samsung Bioepis is under consideration by regulators in the European Union. Samsung Bioepis, a joint venture between Samsung Biologics and Biogen, is taking aim with its version of etanercept.

Giant cell arteritis (GCA) is a medium and large vasculitis, wherein only glucocorticoids (GC) treatment has been the mainstay of therapy. As many will require prolonged treatment, the hazards of GC are well known, lead to substantial toxicity and morbidity.

A thoughtful perspective on the purpose, focus and cost of guideline efforts in rheumatology has been published in the journal Rheumatology.

Furie and coworkers presented the results of a 52-week phase II trial of anifrolumab (ANIFR), a type I interfernon (IFN) receptor antagonist in patients with lupus (SLE).

Liu and coworkers from Boston presented abstract #1213, with data from the NHS II Survey. They examined 93,859 women (without RA) and their dietary data from 1991 to 2011.

 Myasoedova and colleagues from the Mayo Clinic have reported their new data that demonstrates improving cardiovascular (CV) mortality rates in current RA patients treated with modern drugs.

TNF blocker Induced Psoriasis: Take Home Messages

ACR 2015 RA treatment guidelines were published yesterday, nearly a year after they were preliminarily presented at the 2014 ACR meeting in Boston. After a year of review and revision these have been posted.

In October 2015, RheumNow published 76 tweets about impactful news, research and teaching points that impact the rheumatology community. In October, RN had a reach (impressions) of 49,500, 79 mentions, and over 2000 visits to RheumNow.com to check out what we publish.

MONTREAL -- An immunosuppressive drug was as effective as a standard agent for interstitial lung disease (ILD) associated with scleroderma, a researcher said.

The October 27 issue of JAMA reports a study of federal marketplace insurance plans shows roughly 15 percent completely lacked in-network physicians for at least one specialty, a practice found among multiple states and issuers.

Despite concerns over safety, the FDA Arthritis Advisory Committee voted favorably to approve lesinurad (LES) at a meeting held Friday, October 23, 2015. Overall, panel members felt the potential benefits of LES outweighed the safety concerns reviewed by the FDA presenters.