ATLANTA—“Bane of our existence” and “pajama time”—the dreaded time spent at night catching up on documentation—are a couple of phrases associated with the electronic medical record (EMR). To try to ease the frustration and limit the amount of time physicians have to spend using the systems, two experts reviewed tools and tricks for Epic and…
Living like a king has its price. And while kings and queens are primarily something of yesteryear, the vast majority of those living in reasonably wealthy nations can now live like kings. Now, back to that price. Gout, once known as the disease of kings, has been around at least since the time of the…
Since it was first described, the spectrum of disease caused by deficiency of adenosine deaminase 2 (DADA2) has been broadening. Features described include systemic vascular and inflammatory features and recurrent stroke, which overlap with childhood-onset polyarteritis nodosa (PAN). Previous data show that DADA2 has extensive genotypic and phenotypic variation.1 Results from a recently published study…
A 59-year-old woman presented to our rheumatology clinic with a six-month history of a symmetric polyarthritis. She initially experienced pain in both knees. As time progressed, she began to notice pain in her ankles, hips, shoulders, hands and feet. She experienced joint stiffness lasting for more than 30 minutes every morning. She also described worsening…
Angioimmunoblastic T cell lymphoma (AITL) is an aggressive, peripheral T cell, non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma with an incidence of 0.05 cases per 100,000 person-years in the U.S., and it typically manifests in adults older than 60 years.1,2 AITL was previously known as angioimmunoblastic lymphadenopathy with dysproteinemia, immunoblastic lymphadenopathy or lymphogranulomatosis X, due to the hypothesis that the…
Ever wonder what role physician regulators—rheumatologists, in particular—perform at the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA)? “I am not sure that many practicing rheumatologists know there are clinicians who work for the FDA,” says rheumatologist Nadia Habal, MD, a medical officer in the Division of Pulmonary, Allergy, and Rheumatology Products at the FDA. “It would…
A 65-year-old woman was referred by an orthopedist to a rheumatologist for left knee pain. Previously, in 2014, she underwent left total knee arthroplasty (TKA) for severe osteoarthritis in a different institution. Following the procedure, she experienced severe chronic anterolateral knee pain at rest, exacerbated by walking. Because she was rendered wheelchair bound and required…
How are COVID-19 and physical distancing restrictions at work affecting rheumatology professionals? The Rheumatologist interviewed clinical pharmacist Wendy Ramey, BSPharm, RPh, CSP, to discuss how the pandemic has changed the way her staff supports rheumatologists at the University of Kentucky Specialty Pharmacy and Infusion Services, Lexington. Ms. Ramey describes how these unprecedented times affect patients,…
In March 2020, an elderly married couple living on Long Island, N.Y., presented to our emergency department with symptoms suspicious for COVID-19 infection. The wife, a-76-year-old woman, presented with complaints of subjective fevers, minimal dry cough and headaches of one-week duration. She denied having any chills, rhinorrhea, diarrhea, abdominal pain or shortness of breath. Two…
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was passed in 1990 to protect the civil rights of people with disabilities. This law, and amendments passed in 2008, resulted in rules and regulations opening access to private settings serving the public, including doctors’ offices and medical facilities. The ADA includes a three-pronged definition of disability. If any…