In 1949, the first description of patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) given cortisone sent shockwaves through the medical community, quickly capturing the public imagination as well. The paradigm-shifting report paved the way for the use of cortisone and related drugs in RA and many other medical conditions.1 The following is a discussion of some of…
What do these studies tell us about disease mechanisms in lupus?
Research in The New England Journal of Medicine has opened new avenues for exploring the pathophysiology of disease flares in rheumatoid arthritis.1 Through longitudinal genomic analysis, researchers have identified a naive B cell signature prior to rheumatoid arthritis flares, as well as a type of mesenchymal cell, that may play an important role in flare…
A 14-year-old girl is referred to your office for fatigue and arthralgias. While you’re obtaining her past medical history, she divulges that she has had four episodes of bilateral parotitis, each lasting two weeks. An otolaryngologist evaluated her. She lacked sicca symptoms, had a normal complete blood count (CBC), normal inflammatory markers and a negative…