Dramatic changes have occurred over the past 50 years in rheumatology practice and management. As an integral part of the healthcare team, the rheumatology nurse must navigate these changes and the advancements in treatment options and care available for patients with rheumatic disease. Rheumatology nursing was recognized as a nursing specialty by the American Nurses…
As the literature on comorbidities linked to psoriatic arthritis (PsA) expands, it’s becoming more difficult for clinicians to keep up with what comorbidities should be assessed and how these comorbidities affect treatment selection. Given this, rheumatologists at the Perelman School of Medicine at University of Pennsylvania, Cleveland Clinic and Hospital for Special Surgery in New…
As a physician, it’s important to be in the present 100% of the time. “Writing the wrong number on a prescription pad is an extreme, but important, example of what could happen if a physician is distracted,” says consultant Donna Singer, Donna Singer Consulting LLC, Newton, Mass. Sanjay Chabra, DO, director of rheumatology, St. Jude…
Maura Daly Iversen Named Catherine Worthingham Fellow by APTA Maura Daly Iversen, PT, DPT, SD, MPH, FNAP, FAPTA, associate editor of The Rheumatologist, was recently named a Catherine Worthingham Fellow—the highest honor among the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA) membership categories. According to the award announcement, Worthingham “motivated others to make an impact within the…
Sidney R. Block, MD, has practiced rheumatology in Maine since 1975, where he now lives on the coast in Northport. He has received the Paulding Phelps Award and been recognized as a Master by the American College of Rheumatology. He is also a lay cantor for the Jewish reform congregation in Bangor, which he helped…
The first biosmilar products have been approved in the U.S. and Canada, following Europe’s early lead. Canada approved its first biosimilar monoclonal antibody (mAb) therapy, known as Inflectra (infliximab), on March 30, 2015.1 In Canada, biosimilars are being called subsequent entry biologic (SEB) agents. Inflectra is approved for treating patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), ankylosing…
Scleroderma is a rare rheumatologic autoimmune disease that affects the skin and can also affect other organs. Due to excess formation of scar tissue, blood flow to the extremities is decreased, primarily to the hands, and tissues often become hypoxic, resulting in sclerodactyly and proximal skin involvement.2 The incidence of scleroderma in the U.S. is…
In 1984, I wrote my first prescription for the antimalarial drug, hydroxychloroquine (Plaquenil), for a 28-year-old woman with SLE. She was considerably overweight, with inflammatory arthritis and a photosensitive rash, and I worried that oral corticosteroids would tip her over into diabetes. I presented the case to my attending, Steven Malawista, MD, at the Yale…
Incident-to Billing Case Scenario A 51-year-old female patient returns for a follow-up visit with a physician assistant (PA) for unilateral primary osteoarthritis of her right knee. She had an intraarticular corticosteroid injection of her right knee six weeks prior to her visit. She reports significant improvement in her knee pain and stiffness, and states the…
Diagnoses: ICD-9 715.16, 528.02, E943.8 ICD-10 M17.11, K12.32, T39.395A This was an established patient visit with a new diagnosis. Because the PA sought out the physician to address the new problem and document the assessment and treatment, the visit can still be billed as incident-to. Note: The physician initiated the plan of care for treatment…