Mart Mannik, MD, professor emeritus, Division of Rheumatology at the University of Washington (UW), passed away on Wednesday, Aug. 22, 2018. Dr. Mannik was born in Estonia and came to the U.S. at age 12 as a refugee from World War II. He received his medical degree from Western Reserve University School of Medicine in…
Pain sensitization, such as that experienced by patients with carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS), has been associated with poorer clinical outcomes after surgery. New research has found that, although pain sensitization in CTS patients correlates with preoperative symptom severity, CTS symptoms did not have a persistent effect on functional outcomes after surgery…
Paula Marchetta, MD, MA, MBA, became a member of the ACR in 1989, during her rheumatology fellowship at Bellevue Hospital and the New York University (NYU) Medical Center. Just 10 years earlier, rheumatology had been an unlikely path. Dr. Marchetta—with a love of the arts—was pursuing Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in English. But she found…
This week, Hazel L. Breland, PhD, OTR/L, FAOTA, stepped into her new role as the 50th ARHP president. Dr. Breland is an associate professor of occupational therapy (OT) at the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston where she teaches masters students, serves as academic fieldwork coordinator for clinical placements of all entry-level graduate OT…
CHICAGO—ACR leaders described a series of looming legislative and regulatory threats to rheumatologists and their patients—including the proposed collapsing of evaluation and management (E/M) coding and potential changes to step therapy rules—and urged everyone in the field to make their voices heard to quash the proposals. They also recounted recent victories in the policy realm…
CHICAGO—Christina H. Opava, PhD, RPT, is the recipient of the 2018 ARHP Lifetime Achievement Award, which was presented (along with the other ACR and ARHP awards) during the opening session of the 2018 ACR/ARHP Annual Meeting on Oct. 20. “Receiving this award is an immense honor,” she tells The Rheumatologist. “My first thought was that…
Patients with lumbosacral radiculopathy syndrome (LRS) may wonder if physicality of their jobs contributed to the development of their symptoms. A recent systematic review sought to identify LRS work-related risk factors. Researchers found that bending and lifting of the trunk, both alone and in combination, may contribute to LRS…
You are seeing a hospital consult late in the afternoon on a Saturday. The patient has suspected, new-onset lupus with inflammatory arthritis, renal failure with nephrotic range proteinuria and a malar rash. You plan to start the patient on high-dose IV steroids, and you decide to speak to the nephrologist on call first. When he…
“I think I’m mentally sharper when I have been exercising and taking care of myself,” says Chris Phillips, MD, a rheumatologist in solo practice in Paducah, Ky. Dr. Phillips has recognized these benefits since high school, when he began participating in competitive sports. Four years ago, Dr. Phillips was competing against 40 other cyclists in…
Canadian Pediatric Rheumatologist Invested into Order of Canada Peter Dent, MD, professor emeritus of pediatrics at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, was invested into the Order of Canada in May. The Order of Canada is the country’s highest civilian honor. “Dr. Dent has had a substantial positive impact on healthcare, in Hamilton and far…