As a health educator at Integrative Rheumatology, a private practice in Charlotte, N.C., Latisha Williams, MPH, CHES, CHC, works with patients to teach them how to better manage their disease. In the two-and-a-half years that Ms. Williams has worked at Integrative Rheumatology, she’s answered countless questions about exercise, nutrition and complementary therapies, among other topics. “Patients…
2020 has not only borne witness to a global pandemic, but also to increasing fervor in the fight for racial equity. In a wave of opposition to the systemic racism in the U.S., people have been in the streets demonstrating and protesting against social injustice and have taken to social media to promote political action….
The ACR submitted comments to the Institute for Clinical & Economic Review outlining key considerations that should inform independent assessment of the efficacy and cost-effectiveness of medical therapies for lupus nephritis.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services have provided the opportunity to apply for exceptions for the Performance Year (PY) 2020 Quality Payment Program Merit-Based Incentive Program (MIPS) program requirements. This will help clinicians finding PY2020 MIPS federal reporting difficult due to circumstances outside their control.
On Sept. 15, rheumatology advocates met virtually with members of Congress to share personal accounts of how telehealth is making a difference during the COVID-19 pandemic and what will help stem a workforce shortage.
A 67–year-old white woman with primary Raynaud’s phenomenon presented following a week of progressively worsening shortness of breath, dry cough and generalized malaise. An avid tennis player, she first noticed dyspnea while playing, but a few days later grew short of breath even at rest. She went to an urgent care center, where a computed…
Serological testing for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) antibodies may play a critical role in the management of the worldwide health crisis. Such testing may reveal key information for epidemiology, convalescent plasma therapies and vaccine development. However, the situation is complex, and much is unknown. Although such testing may ultimately be used to…
NEW YORK (Reuters Health)—Immunomodulatory therapy is not recommended for most children with COVID-19 who typically will have a mild to moderate course of illness, experts advise in a guidance document in the Journal of the Pediatric Infectious Diseases Society.1 For children with severe or critical COVID-19, immunomodulatory agents “may be beneficial,” but the risks and…
NEW YORK (Reuters Health)—A new study of multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) shows that the immune system is profoundly altered during acute illness, but gradually returns back to normal. MIS-C is distinct from both COVID-19 and Kawasaki disease, but is associated with previous SARS-CoV-2 infection, the immunological profiling study reveals. Dr. Manu Shankar-Hari, an…
During the 2020 ACR State-of-the-Art Clinical Symposium, Zoltán Szekanecz, MD, PhD, addressed the risks of vascular disease and how to manage them in patients with rheumatic diseases.