The 2011 ACR/ARHP Annual Meeting program offers a plethora of opportunities for health professionals to gain insight into emerging concepts in the diagnosis and treatment of rheumatologic disorders as well as improving quality of life in affected patients.
This year’s keynote address, “Sleep for Success! Everything You Must Know About Sleep, but Are Too Tired to Ask,” by James B. Maas, MD, from Cornell University, Ithaca, N.Y., will define the importance of sleep in functioning, performance, and health, and explore strategies to improve sleep quality. Presented on Sunday, November 6 at 9:30 a.m., this session promises to be an eye-opening discourse that you will not want to miss.
On Monday, November 7 at 10:30 a.m., the ARHP Distinguished Lecturer will be Anthony D. Woolf, MD. He will describe the enormous impact of musculoskeletal conditions as elucidated through the Bone and Joint Decade 2000 to 2010 initiative.
Recent research suggests that medical marijuana may have immunomodulatory properties, pushing the controversial topic of its use as a pain therapy in patients with rheumatic diseases back into the spotlight. On Monday, November 7 at 2:30 p.m., “Debate: Joints for Joints: Medical Marijuana is Useful for Treating Rheumatic Disease” will be a spirited discussion on the pros and cons of this treatment modality.
Concurrent Sessions Offer Variety
More than 50 ARHP concurrent sessions are offered during this year’s scientific program, covering a range of important topics. Here are a few of this year’s exciting offerings.
If you want to be able to deconstruct the elements of the randomized controlled trial that contribute to research quality, especially as they relate to investigating nondrug treatments, don’t miss the Sunday, November 6 session from 4:30 to 6:00 p.m. that addresses this important topic.
Clinicians are aware that a major obstacle to achieving good outcomes in arthritis is that patients are often unwilling to change their health behavior. Methods to assess patients’ readiness to change and the skills needed to motivate them to change will be explored in the “Behave Yourself! Practical Application of Cognitive Behavioral Theories to Motivate Change in Patients with Arthritis” session on Monday, November 7 from 7:30 to 8:30 a.m.
This year’s attendees can also reap the benefits of an overview of immunology and targeted therapies, which are at the forefront of the treatment of autoimmune disease, to be offered on Sunday, November 6 from 11:00 a.m. to noon in the session, “Immunology 101 and Targeted Therapies for Rheumatology Healthcare Professionals.”
