Dr. Harold “Hal” Paulus lives in the annals of Rheumatology as a major contributor, mentor, researcher and clinical trialist. He passed away last week, one day after his 89th birthday. I met Dr. Paulus as a fellow in 1985, when he easily included me in his discussions and research on rheumatoid arthritis. I admired his easy demeanor, wry humor and every man character. Most remark on his calm recessive and kind personality that was complemented

Although both the disease and the treatment for it in rheumatology patients may work at cross-purposes with immunizations, only a very few vaccines are absolutely contraindicated in this population, an infectious disease specialist told rheumatologists here.

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

Prior to the introduction of tocilizumab to manage giant cell arteritis (GCA), glucocorticoids (GC) have been the mainstay of therapy, but has been limited by relapses in disease. A recent metanalysis shows that relapses occur in nearly half of patients and are related to the duration of therapy rather than the initial dose of GC.

An NIH funded prospective study has shown that the use of daily dietary supplements was not associated with a subsequent lowering of mortality risk.