Treatment options for painful knee osteoarthritis (OA) are numerous, but comparative outcomes are seldom available. A NEJM report shows that physical therapy is superior to intraarticular glucocorticoids injections assessing the outcomes 12 months after the intervention. 

On April 11th, the ACR Board of Directors approved a COVID-19 guidance document written by an ACR task force charged with updating and clarifying recommendations for rheumatologists and rheumatic disease patient management during the current COVID-19 crisis.

A phase III study of the nerve growth factor and monoclonal antibody tanezumab showed positive results in a refractory patient population with knee or hip osteoarthritis (OA) -- good enough that this agent may finally be approved after a long and rocky development road.

On April 3rd, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) in the UK, published a rapid guideline for managing children and adults with rheumatological autoimmune, inflammatory and metabolic bone disorders during the COVID-19 pandemic, while protecting staff from infection.

We indeed are living in interesting times and we all are seeking not to contract COVID-19 - this is logical. While our goal is to avoid infection, I think we all must agree that our aspirations must encompass more than disease avoidance. What we should be seeking now, as well, is more than absence of disease but rather a state of optimal wellness.

In the midst of a global pandemic of the 2019 Novel coronavirus acute respiratory disease (COVID-19), a small handful of Rheumatologists gathered on social media to collectively grapple with the impact of this virus on vulnerable populations with rheumatic disease.

With the COVID-19 pandemic dynamically changing, we have provided several news items germane to the Rheumatologist.

As the highly virulent SARS-CoV-2 spreads over the world, uncertainty and fear for our patients with rheumatic diseases mount.  

Among patients with knee osteoarthritis (OA), pain was greater for those with coexisting diabetes mellitus (DM), and this association was independent of obesity and radiographic severity, European researchers found. 

Dr. Jack Cush reviews the news and journal articles from the past week on RheumNow.com.

A full-read, novel Viewpoint article published in the Annals of Rheumatic Disease (Huizinga TWJ, et al) spotlights a recent international meeting of big thinkers, scientific collaborators and industry dedicated to innovation in rheumatology.

Cannbinoids are widely available and used for a variety of indications, but little is known about their safety and their potential for drug interactions. The Canadian Medical Journal has published a review of drug interactions with cannabinoids, many of which are mediated by cytochrome-P450 metabolism.

Dr Jack Cush Reviews the news and journal articles from the past week on RheumNow.com

Fatigue is an important component of the disease experience in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), and can have a profound impact on patients' perception of well-being, Italian researchers reported.

Dr. Jack Cush reviews the highlights from the 2020 RWCS meeting in Maui, Hawaii.

The BMJ reports that while most US providers are cautious in their prescribing, half of opioid prescriptions are written by 1% of providers.

Between 2003 and 2017, there was an annual average of 669495 providers prescribing 8.9 million opioid prescriptions.

A new study in Scientific Reports suggest that circadian rhythms play an important role in wound healing, and that nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) may be disruptive if taken at night given primary healing that occurs in a body at night. 

The Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery & Psychiatry reports there is moderate evidence that six sleep disorders (insomnia, fragmentation, daytime dysfunction, prolonged latency, rapid eye movement sleep behaviour disorder and excessive time in bed) significantly increases the ri

Dr. Jack Cush reviews the news and journal reports from this past week on RheumNow.com. The podcast covers: best therapies for dactylitis and enthesitis; we have a new knockout for knee pain in OA; and are you on the naughty or nice list when it comes to the new ACR-AF guidelines for arthritis? This and more. Tune in.

A group of Western Australian clinicians have set out to assess current practices and proved guidance recommendations for high-quality care for the most common musculoskeletal (MSK) pain scenarios encountered by clinicians in emergency and primary care.