Guiding Patients Considering Biologics
What are the questions patients should ask their doctors about biologics? Are there rules for starting and stopping biologics?
Blogs
Biologic Prescribing and Patient Education
Biologics are big. Their popularity is reflected in their growing use since being introduced in 1998. Biologics have been used by more than 3 million patients worldwide. In 2013, Enbrel, Remicade and Humira accounted for nearly $30 billion in worldwide sales. In the USA, it is estimated that we will spend $220 billion on biologics by 2017.
What It’s Like to Work with a KOL (Key Opinion Leader)
Rheumatology is fortunate to have many "key opinion leaders" (KOLs) to teach, study, synthesize and pave the advances in our discipline. Who are these KOLs and how can we tell them apart?
Why Not Just Kick the TNFi Habit?
Why do we use TNF inhibitors as our first biologic choice? Is it the evidence of efficacy, access, safety, and drug retention, or is it a prescriber habit that merits critique?
KOLs Predict: What Will the Next Year Bring?
A new subspecialty may emerge. New drugs will be approved (but it will be difficult for patients to get coverage for them). And an American team will win the World Series. All these and more: here are predictions for 2017 and beyond from rheumatologists across the country and around the world.
"A Touch of Humanity": Seven Perspectives on RheumNow
"Making the complex simple, the simple useful, and the opaque crystal clear." Rheumatologists (plus one non-rheumatologist) from around the world weigh in on RheumNow's impact over the past year.
Why My Patients Sit Where They Sit
Where do your patients sit? Have you noticed they don't usually sit where you expect them to? What's up with that, and is there a psychology behind one's choice of seating? This curious observation may portend the nature of the physician-patient relationship or, at the very least, impact the layout of your next clinic.
Do's and Don'ts of Vaccination: a (Very) Brief Guide for Rheumatologists
The five do's and don'ts when it comes to vaccinating your patients.
“Doctors Don’t Get Sick”
We physicians are clearly better at defining “too sick to work” in our patients than we are for ourselves. After pondering this ill issue, I’ve come up with some wisdom, goofiness and facts.
Time for a Paradigm Change in Rheumatoid Arthritis
How many clues are needed for a rheumatologist to know something is wrong with the therapeutic soup he/she is trying to concoct? One patient's tale leads to rethinking the RA treatment paradigm.
RA Guidelines Shouldn't Ignore the Power of Methotrexate Combo Therapy
The introduction of the 2015 rheumatoid arthritis treatment guidelines has prompted discussion and critique from many. Here's my perspective on where monotherapy and methotrexate combination therapy fits in our armamentarium.
Week in Review - 20 Feb 2016
Highlights of Rheumatology news for the week ending 20 Feb 2016.
