A 26-year-old Peruvian woman presented to the emergency department of a large teaching hospital in Lima, Peru, with epistaxis and hematomas that had occurred over the preceding few days; she was found to have severe thrombocytopenia and a normocytic, normochromic anemia. She was treated with pulse doses of methylprednisolone; however, within two days, she presented…
The Lupus and Allied Diseases Association Inc. established the Marc R. Chevrier, MD, PhD, FACR, Lupus Research Memorial Fund at the Rheumatology Research Foundation, effective March 1. This fund was established to honor the life and legacy of Marc Chevrier, MD, PhD, FACR, a pioneer and patient advocate in the field of lupus. About Dr….
Since 1991, hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) has been a staple for the treatment of patients with systemic lupus erythematosus; it has been shown to improve survival, reduce cardiovascular risk, thrombosis and renal damage, delay or prevent lupus cerebritis and more. However, HCQ can potentially bind in the retinal pigment epithelium and cause degeneration of photoreceptors, leading to…
In December, the FDA approved belimumab, the first drug approved to treat lupus nephritis, an historic action that was rapidly followed in January by the approval of a second treatment for lupus nephritis, voclosporin.
A better understanding of knowledge gaps and increased engagement of underrepresented communities are needed to diversify rheumatology patient data in clinical datasets, registries and randomized clinical trials.
Researchers found nearly all systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) patients have autoantibodies against long interspersed nuclear elements (LINE-1) p40. These findings suggest LINE-1 may be involved in the pathogenesis of SLE.
I read with interest the case report of a patient with lupus enteritis in the February 2021 issue of The Rheumatologist, and I thought the diagnostic approach and final diagnosis were very well presented; however, I noticed an omission which in my view is quite relevant to this patient’s overall management and to so many…
Rheumatologists are in the unique position of diagnosing and treating rare auto-inflammatory and autoimmune diseases. Although systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) often has textbook presentations, it is a heterogeneous condition with a wide variety of disease manifestations. In 2019, the European League Against Rheumatism and the ACR introduced new classification criteria to help diagnose this condition.1…
ACR CONVERGENCE 2020—In a year like no other, the 2020 virtual ACR Convergence was a meeting like no other. Nonetheless, the meeting introduced a healthy mix of clinical insights and take-home pearls, according to panelists in the meeting’s closing session, Bright Future: Discovery & Growth. In this session, panelists discussed some of the biggest news…
The occurrence of opportunistic infections is an established complication in patients diagnosed with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). The foremost challenge in such circumstances is differentiating between an exacerbation or progression of SLE, and the effects of the infection itself.1 Toxoplasma gondii is a ubiquitous parasite that often causes an asymptomatic infection in healthy, immunocompetent adults….