Exclusive: ACR Convergence 2024| Focus Rheums

An official publication of the ACR and the ARP serving rheumatologists and rheumatology professionals

Industry Ties Common among Nonprofit Patient Advocacy Groups

Gene Emery  |  

(Reuters Health)—An examination of more than 100 of the largest U.S. nonprofit organizations created to improve health and fight disease has found that more than 8 in 10 get financial support from companies involved in the drug, biotechnology and medical device industry. In addition, over a third have at least one industry official on their…

A New Administration Brings Updated ACR Policy Positions

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The ACR continues to broaden its advocacy efforts on issues critical to rheumatology, as described in updates to its 2017 health policy statements. Along with continuing to advocate for access to care and treatments, enhancements to rheumatology research and training the next generation of rheumatologists, the 2017 health policy statements address a number of new…

ACR Puts Forward Principles on Patient Access to Care

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As the 115th Congress and the Trump administration consider potential reforms to the healthcare system, including actions related to the Affordable Care Act (ACA), physicians around the country remain vitally concerned about the need to preserve and improve access to care for their patients. To that end, the ACR continues to lobby for policies that…

ACR Releases New Position Statements on Site of Service & Compounding

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Patient Safety & Site of Service for Biologics Although emphasizing its strong support for the use of biologic agents as necessary treatments for rheumatic diseases, the ACR Board of Directors continues to be concerned about the safe delivery of these agents, given the potential for associated adverse events and infusion reactions. In a position statement…

Comparative Assessment of the Different ACR/EULAR Remission Definitions for RA for Their Use as Clinical Trial End Points

Arthritis & Rheumatology  |  

Significant advances have been made in the treatment of RA over the past 20 years, and with the hope of developing even more effective therapeutics, achieving a very low level of disease activity, such as remission, is an important outcome to be examined. The ACR and EULAR have defined remission using Boolean- or index-based criteria. The researchers undertook this study to compare definitions of remission to inform choice of end points for future RA clinical trials and included in their comparison the remission criterion of a score of ≤2.8 on the Clinical Disease Activity Index…

Peripheral Helper Cells May Provide Clue to RA Pathology

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Research has identified a subset of T cells, peripheral helper (TPH) cells, which may promote pathological B cell responses and antibody production in patients with seropositive RA. TPH cells also express chemokine receptors, enabling them to infiltrate inflamed parts of the body and stimulate B cells to produce antibodies…