An estimated one in four American adults live with a rheumatic disease, and according to a new national patient survey by the ACR, the healthcare and lifestyle challenges have become worse for these patients during the COVID-19 pandemic. Key survey findings include: Patients currently seeing a rheumatologist declined 52% between 2019 and 2020; 68% of…
Many clinicians are receiving smaller reimbursements than expected for their 2021 Merit-Based Incentive Payment System adjustments. Available funding is extremely limited due to the high number of clinicians who were unable to report 2019 MIPS data and accepted the automatic neutral payment under the extreme and uncontrollable circumstances policy.
What to vaccinate for and when to do so are challenges for rheumatologists and rheumatology professionals under normal circumstances. During the COVID-19 pandemic, even more questions are being raised, specifically regarding a possible vaccine for SARS-CoV-2. The ACR’s COVID-19 Practice and Advocacy Task Force is working on a guidance document to help ACR members address these pressing questions.
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…
A study from October 2019 describes the clinical characteristics of pediatric patients with undefined systemic autoinflammatory diseases. Researchers conducted a genetic analysis and outlined specific variants. They found patients with pericarditis and intellectual impairment may have distinct clinical phenotypes, which may lead to improved diagnostic and treatment options.
(Reuters Health)—Only 19 U.S. states mandate that pharmacists fill prescriptions for brand-name small molecule drugs with generics when available, with the 31 remaining states allowing but not requiring these substitutions, a new study finds. Researchers examined laws on the books as of September 2019 pertaining to generic substitution of small molecule drugs, as well as…
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…
In a study, researchers found rheumatoid arthritis patients experience a persistent burden of functional disability regardless of disease duration, age or gender.
For some patients with systemic lupus erythematosus, regular repeated treatment with rituximab may prevent disease flare, according to a study from Cassia et al.
RA patients experience a higher rate of cardiovascular disease (CVD) events than controls. In a new study, Karpouzas et al. determined that current biologic disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drug use is associated with reduced long-term CVD risk, protective calcification of noncalcified lesions and a lower likelihood of new plaque formation in patients with early atherosclerosis.