All News
Understanding Non-arthritic Rheumatic iRAEs
A better understanding of rheumatic immune-related adverse event phenotypes beyond inflammatory arthritis has been furthered by work from three abstracts presented at EULAR 2019 in Madrid.
Read ArticleLupus Disease Control with Rituximab
Rituximab (Rituxan) may be an option for maintenance therapy in patients with difficult-to-treat systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), European researchers reported.
Read ArticleThe Cost of Physician Burnout
An article in the Annals of Internal Medicine has analyzed the cost-consequences of physician burnout, including costs related to physician turnover and reduced clinical hours.
Read Article2019 EULAR Guidelines on Antiphospholipid Syndrome Management
A EULAR task force has reviewed the medical literature and developed evidence-based recommendations for the management of antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) in adults. They note that a high-risk antiphospholipid antibody (aPL) profile is associated with greater risk for thrombotic and obstetric APS.
Read ArticleCoexistent Gout Increases Risk in Rheumatoid Arthritis
It his often said that gout and rheumatoid arthritis (RA) cannot coexist and where confusion exists, a good history and testing for serum urate (SUA) and rheumatoid factor (RF) can usually clarify the dominant disorders. A recent study shows that hyperuricemia and gout are uncommon in RA, but when present shows an increased risk of comorbidities and cardiovascular (CV) mortality.
Risk Score Predicts Thrombosis Recurrence in APS
A combination risk score helped predict recurrent thrombosis -- particularly arterial -- among patients with antiphospholipid syndrome (APS), an international study found.
Read ArticlePresenting Features of Early SLE
What clinical features best identify early systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) patients from mimics? A multicenter, multinational study aimed to evaluate manifestations at disease onset and to compare early SLE manifestations to those of diseases mimicking SLE.
Read ArticleMultiple Delays in Referral of New RA Patients
A UK study of early onset arthritis or new rheumatoid arthritis patients shows multiple sources of delayed referral to the first rheumatology consultation.
Read ArticleBiologic Agents have Equal Efficacy in Enthesitis and Dactylitis
A systematic review has shown that TNF inhibitors (TNFi) are equaled in efficacy by other biologic agents (ustekinumab, secukinumab, and ixekizumab) in psoriatic arthritis (PsA) patients with in dactylitis and enthesitis.
Read ArticleLower Mortality Results from Lower Activity in Lupus
Data from the longitudinal Tromsø Lupus Cohort study has shown that lupus patients who achieve a Lupus Low Disease Activity State (LLDAS‐50) were shown to have significantly less severe damage, and a reduction in mortality.
This was a population‐based study of SLE patients in the northern‐most counties of Norway.
HHS Issues New EHR Record Sharing Rule
WASHINGTON -- Patients would have access to their electronic health records free of charge and would be able to transfer them more easily from one provider to another under rules proposed Monday by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
Read ArticleIxekizumab and Complete Resolution of Enthesitis and Dactylitis
IL-17 inhibitors have proven to be effective in psoriatic arthritis. Analyses of ixekizumab-treated PsA patients with enthesitis or dactylitis shows this approach to yield significant improvements in enthesitis and dactylitis.
Read ArticleMalar Rash and Polyarthritis
58-year-old woman with a history of hypothyroidism presents with a 2-week history of joint pain and swelling in her right knee, which became migratory and later affected the metacarpophalangeal (MCP) and proximal interphalangeal (PIP) joints of her fingers; this followed a series of others being sick in the household.
Read ArticleBest of 2018: Advance Practice Clinicians Proliferating in Specialty Practices
An analysis of SK&A outpatient provider files, covering 90% of physician practices in the United States, shows that between 2008 to 2016, there was a 22% increase in the employment of advanced practice clinicians (APCs) by specialty practices. By 2016, 28% of all specialty practices employed APCs.
Read ArticleBest of 2018: Hydroxychloroquine Being Over-Dosed with New Guidelines?
Hydroxychloroquine retinopathy prevention guidelines have revised from ideal body weight-based dosing to actual body weight-based dosing; the question remains whether these have been adopted in clinical practice.
A database of nearly 21,000 new HCQ users from a UK general population database studied HCQ dosing and use between 2007 and 2016. Specifically they examined whether users were subjected to excess HCQ dosing per ophthalmology guidelines (defined by exceeding 6.5 mg/kg of IBW and 5.0 mg/kg of ABW).
Nailfold Videocapillaroscopy in Dermatomyositis
A study of nailfold videocapillaroscopy (NVC) in patients with idiopathic inflammatory myopathies (IIMs) finds abnormalities in more than half of patients suggesting this could be a useful clinical tool in diagnosing and managing patients with IIM.
Read ArticlePatients Don't Always Tell the Truth
Sometimes patients withhold information from their doctors, and a new study suggests that as much as 60 - 80% of patients consciously omit information to their doctors, despite knowing this may bear on their health and well-being.
Read ArticleThe Benefits of a Lupus Clinic
A comparative cohort study assessing the quality of care in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) suggests that a dedicated lupus clinic has better quality measure performance compared to lupus management in a general rheumatology clinic.
Read Article