2018 Evelyn V. Hess Award The Evelyn V. Hess Award is given annually to recognize the exceptional contributions of a clinical or basic researcher whose body of work has advanced the understanding of the science of lupus treatment. At a reception during the 2018 ACR/ARHP Annual Meeting in Chicago, the Lupus Foundation of America presented…
CHICAGO—The pre-clinical rheumatology curriculum at the University of North Carolina (UNC) School of Medicine, Chapel Hill, used to consist mainly of portions of a musculoskeletal course, with up to only three instructional hours, and not always with a rheumatologist in the room with students. Systemic autoimmune diseases were never fully discussed in any of the…
CHICAGO—Resolving conflict doesn’t start with clever strategizing, but with understanding the bigger picture and the factors that led to conflict in the first place, from cultural differences to resistance to change, an expert said at the 2018 ACR/ARHP Annual Meeting in a session about how to be a better leader. “To me, what’s often missing…
CHICAGO—In systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), most types of severe pulmonary manifestations are relatively rare, but it’s crucial they be caught because of the potentially dire consequences, said Richard Silver, MD, professor in the Rheumatology Division at the Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, at the 2018 ACR/ARHP Annual Meeting. Pulmonary Manifestations Parenchymal disease—seen in the…
CHICAGO—The path to the discovery of cortisone—a top-selling, important drug, with dozens of indications—was complicated by failure, false moves, desperation and obsession. The tale, recounted in the Philip Hench, MD, Memorial Lecture: Crossroads of History & Hope: Discovery & First Use of Cortisone for RA at the 2018 ACR/ARHP Annual Meeting in October, is an…
The ACR–Indian Rheumatology Association (IRA) International Fellows Exchange Program was developed in 2016 to foster scientific collaboration between members of the ACR and junior rheumatologists representing the IRA. I was lucky enough to be selected to participate in this exchange initiative, and I can’t thank these two organizations enough for working together to provide this…
As we turn the corner on the second decade of biologic use for rheumatic disorders, a reappraisal of approach in our communication with patients is due. In practice, the impact these agents have on patients’ lives justifies the friction rheumatologists face when connecting patients to them. You can understand why older rheumatologists who apprenticed on…
Since it was first reported in 1916, a correlation between inflammatory myopathies and cancer has been noted in several studies. Population studies have confirmed this relationship, and the phrase cancer-associated myopathy has entered the vernacular. Over the past decade, research efforts have shifted toward revealing associations between autoantibodies and clinical phenotypes. One subset of auto-antigens…
At diagnosis, temporal artery biopsy results and large-vessel involvement of patients with giant cell arteritis may be stronger predictors of mortality than cardiovascular risk factors…
There are moments that the words don’t reach There is suffering too terrible to name You hold your child as tight as you can And push away the unimaginable —Lin Manuel Miranda A friend of mine was killed a few days ago. By the time you read this column, the scars will have already started…