ACR CONVERGENCE 2020—Bisphosphonates are an important treatment for millions of older Americans with osteoporosis because the drugs inhibit osteoclastic bone resorption to reduce the risk of painful, debilitating fractures.1 More than 20 years ago, data emerged that bisphosphonates have a long terminal half-life.2 So after years of therapy, could some patients take a drug holiday?…
Certain nutrients or dietary patterns may affect inflammation and rheumatic disease risk in certain populations. Recommended nutrients include omega-3 fatty acids found in fish, poultry or nuts. Following a Mediterranean or standard Western diet may affect RA risk too.
It was a delight to read the comments in the May 2019 issue of The Rheumatologist on a paper by Hirsch and colleagues, discussing how health literacy affects the patient global assessment.1,2 Patient-driven outcome measures (PROs), patient global assessment on a visual analog scale (VAS) or a numeric rating scale (NRS), a segmented numeric version…
A recent article in Arthritis Care & Research supports the idea that the patient global assessment reflects primarily the patient’s experience of their functioning in daily life.1 Background The patient global assessment is a key measure used by clinicians and researchers to help evaluate disease status in rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Lead author Ethan T. Craig,…
As practice administrator for the past nine years at Emerald Coast Rheumatology in Lynn Haven, Fla., Andre Smith has worked to expand what was a single-provider, three-employee practice into an 8,000-square foot rheumatology clinic and 18-chair infusion center with two additional providers. Although not all rheumatologists have a practice administrator on staff, those who do…
Although systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) affects both the central nervous system (CNS) and peripheral nervous system (PNS), past research has primarily focused on how lupus affects the CNS. Now, an international, inception cohort study, “Peripheral Nervous System Disease in Systemic Lupus Erythematosus,” published in Arthritis & Rheumatology, has examined different types of PNS disease to…
ACR CONVERGENCE 2020—At the ACR’s fully virtual annual meeting on Saturday, Nov. 7, Anthony S. Fauci, MD, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) since 1984, delivered a special lecture on COVID-19, from virology to therapy to vaccine development. Novel Coronavirus, Familiar Vectors When Chinese physicians first reported infections by what…
ACR CONVERGENCE 2020—In patients with connective tissue diseases, such as systemic sclerosis (SSc), pulmonary hypertension (PH) remains one of the leading causes of morbidity and mortality. In her lecture on Friday, Nov. 6, Pulmonary Hypertension: An Update, Mardi Gomberg-Maitland, MD, MSc, professor of medicine and medical director of the Pulmonary Hypertension Program at The George…
The COVID-19 global pandemic has disrupted rheumatology clinics and practices all over the world. In the U.S., many providers have used telemedicine to expand access to care for their patients while managing in-person visits. Brett Smith, DO, who practices at the Blount Memorial Physicians Group, East Tennessee Children’s Hospital, Knoxville, spoke with The Rheumatologist about…
A new disease model for lupus tackles issues with fatigue and other serious conditions that, although quite common among patients, get less attention because they fall outside classic symptoms associated with inflammation, a debilitating force behind systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). The model features subtypes to categorize two main groups of symptoms into type 1, typically…