The ACR has released clinical guidance documents for pediatric patients with rheumatic disease in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, including one for multi-system inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C). Jay Mehta, MD, MS, an attending physician in the Division of Rheumatology and director of the Pediatric Rheumatology Fellowship at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP),…
I should have paid more attention in medical school. If I had, I might have remembered enough about basic pathophysiology to know why everyone was suddenly pulling their patients off of lisinopril. For those of you who need a quick primer: When the pressure in the renal artery drops, the kidney secretes renin. Working together,…
Looking back on last year’s ACR/ARP annual meeting, I recall the energy and excitement of attendees as they participated in sessions covering the latest scientific concepts and new directions in our field. In 2019, we piloted a number of innovative ways to modernize and enhance future ACR meetings, with the promise of delivering a transformed…
The ACR position statement on access to care proposes the goal that “… all patients have timely access to expert rheumatology care … .”1 The reality is that new and established rheumatology patient wait times are often prolonged, causing delays in necessary diagnosis and treatment. The 2005 and 2015 ACR Workforce studies document intractable and…
An analysis of data from the COVID-19 Global Rheumatology Alliance registry shows that use of disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs or non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs did not increase the risk of hospitalization for COVID-19 patients with rheumatic disease, but steroid use did.
At the Loma Linda University Medical Center, Calif., rheumatologists play a key consulting role for COVID-19 patients who may benefit from the use of biologic treatments…
Japanese pediatrician Tomisaku Kawasaki, MD, who identified an inflammatory syndrome that affects children, died on June 5 in Tokyo. He was 95. Tenacity & Attention to Detail Born Feb. 7, 1925, in Tokyo, Dr. Kawasaki graduated from medical school at what is now Chiba University in Chiba, Japan, in 1948 and worked as staff pediatrician…
June saw the passing of a beloved colleague, mentor and friend to many in the rheumatology community when J. Timothy Harrington, MD, died of pancreatic cancer in his hometown of Madison, Wis. Dr. Harrington trained at Massachusetts General Hospital, the National Institutes of Health National Cancer Institute and UT Southwestern Medical Center, and served on…
This September marks the ACR’s fifth annual Rheumatic Disease Awareness Month (RDAM), which is designed to build support and advocate for patients with rheumatic diseases. This year’s theme, “My disease may be invisible, but I’m not,” emphasizes patients’ personal experiences…
A 27-year-old, left-handed man was referred to our ultrasound clinic for left elbow pain. History The patient had been a pitcher on a Minor League Baseball team. Two years before, he developed sudden, severe medial elbow pain while pitching in a game. The pain was associated with some tingling down the left medial forearm. The…
Working in support of underserved communities, making and donating masks, volunteering with local rheumatic disease-focused organizations—these are just some of the ways rheumatology professionals have been giving back to their patients and communities…
Rhabdomyolysis is a clinical syndrome characterized by muscle tissue necrosis and release of intramuscular components into the circulation. Typical manifestations include muscle pain and myoglobinuria, causing dark urine. Serum creatinine kinase (CK) enzyme levels are usually markedly elevated. Severity can range from muscle enzyme elevation in the serum of an otherwise asymptomatic patient to extremely…
The diagnosis of rheumatic diseases requires the exclusion of other systemic disorders. Infection, hematologic conditions, malignancies and some drugs may all lead to syndromes that closely mimic rheumatic diseases, which may lead to diagnostic delays. Idiopathic multicentric Castleman disease (iMCD) is a heterogeneous group of lymphoproliferative diseases (LPDs) characterized by systemic inflammatory manifestations.1,2 As with…
Hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (HLH) is a life-threatening disease of immune dysregulation characterized by unchecked inflammatory responses leading to end-organ dysfunction. Primary HLH results from inherited mutations that impair the capacity for immune regulation; secondary HLH arises from the inappropriate response to an immune stimulus, such as infection, malignancy or autoimmunity. What is less well known is…
For many months, the healthcare world has been significantly affected by the swift and pervasive effects of SARS-CoV-2, which causes COVID-19. The virus has severely affected the delivery of patient care by all providers, including those in hospitals and emergency care settings, who grappled with the response to massive influxes of COVID-19 patients, and those…
Over the past 20 years, Eric L. Matteson, MD, MPH, emeritus chair, Division of Rheumatology, and emeritus professor of medicine at the Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science, Rochester, Minn., as well as a past president of the Rheumatology Research Foundation, has authored or co-authored six books about the history of rheumatic disease and…
In patients with active ankylosing spondylitis, IL-17 inhibitors have produced favorable responses, according to recent research…
Apremilast has been shown to improve the signs and symptoms of mild to moderate plaque psoriasis in adults, according to new research…
Research is examining the safety and tolerability of two different doses of ABX464 in patients with moderate to severe active RA…
COVID-19 Global Alliance registry and other data on rheumatic disease patients with COVID-19 were presented…
Patient with autoimmune disease may experience medical emergencies. Here is an overview of recognition and management of three emergent situations for patients with scleroderma: critical digital ischemia, scleroderma renal crisis and intestinal pseudo-obstruction…
Cancer and autoimmunity have a complex relationship. In a presentation, Ami Shah, MD, MHS, discussed how to use autoantibodies as tools for cancer risk stratification, how to approach cancer screening in individuals with new-onset disease and more…
Suggestions on how to assess risk and manage bone issues in chronic kidney disease patients are offered…
ACR & EULAR recommendations for the treatment of patients with rheumatic illness during the COVID-19 pandemic are explored…