In late March 2012, I awoke with pain in my left hand. I had difficulty moving my metacarpophalangeal (MCP) joints. They did not move smoothly, but clunked. As I repeatedly attempted to open and close my hand, I realized that I had morning stiffness. As the pain and stiffness gradually improved over the next hour,…
Burkholderia pseudomallei, the causative agent of melioidosis, is endemic in Southeast Asia and northern Australia.1 In recent years, the incidence of melioidosis has increased worldwide. Septic arthritis is a rare, but well-recognized, manifestation of melioidosis. Case Report A 49-year-old woman with known diabetes was admitted elsewhere with uncontrolled diabetes and fever. She was found to…
Fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS), rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and spondyloarthritis (SpA) all exhibit multifaceted manifestations, and many patients exhibit overlapping comorbidities. However, patients with FMS are distinct from others in that they experience widespread pain, fatigue and mood changes, including anxiety and depression. Although its hallmark symptom of pain causes rheumatologists to consider FMS a pain disorder,…
At the 2014 ACR/ARHP Annual Meeting in Boston, the Rheumatology Research Foundation staff sat down with a few ACR and ARHP members to get their take on what the Foundation’s 30th anniversary means to them. We spoke with current and former leaders of the Foundation and the ACR, as well as numerous Foundation award recipients,…
The classic American social studies lesson is How a Bill Becomes a Law, but a more pertinent lesson for U.S. rheumatologists today may be How a Dollar Bill Becomes a PAC. This article is a nuts-and-bolts primer on how exactly RheumPAC works. The purpose is to inform readers about how and why to participate. Money…
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…