With a shortage of rheumatologists in the U.S. already a problem and projected to get far worse, the ACR is advocating the passage of a variety of laws that would help narrow the gap. Legislation being fought for by ACR advocacy leaders involves streamlining visa processing for foreign physicians and promoting incentives for physicians to…

Tom Collins is a freelance writer in South Florida, who has written about medical topics from nasty infections to ethical dilemmas, runaway tumors to tornado-chasing doctors. He travels the globe gathering conference health news and lives in West Palm Beach.
Articles by Thomas R. Collins
Registries & Benchmarking: Implementation of Best Practices Can Work—If Done Right
MADRID—Determining what is a best practice in rheumatology and then implementing improvements based on what you find can be fraught with complexity, an expert said during the 2017 Annual European Congress on Rheumatology (EULAR). Examples are emerging of benchmarking projects in which electronic registers are used to improve patient care, said William Dixon, MD, chair…
Calcium Crystal Deposition in Rheumatic Diseases: Mechanisms & Evaluation of Calcium Crystal Deposits Explored
MADRID—Calcification in osteoarthritis (OA) involves a series of pathways and interactions that feed off each other in a process that bears some resemblance to the transformation of cartilage to bone that takes place in the embryonic stage of human development, a researcher said here at the 2017 Annual European Congress on Rheumatology (EULAR). “My hypothesis…
The Role of Macrophages in Inflammation & Fibrosis: Macrophages May Predict Progressive Skin Disease
MADRID—Research into pharmacodynamic biomarkers has shown that macrophages may have an important role in the pathogenesis of several diseases, including systemic sclerosis, an expert said at the 2017 Annual European Congress on Rheumatology (EULAR). The findings were discussed in a session that also covered how an understanding of M1 macrophages’ role in fibrosis has evolved…
Comorbidities & Risk Factors for Developing SLE
MADRID—Researchers have found that systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is independently linked with bipolar disorder and say the findings point to a need for greater awareness of psychiatric problems in patients with SLE. In work led by investigators at Tel Aviv University in Israel and presented at the 2017 Annual European Congress on Rheumatology (EULAR), researchers…
Drug Tapering: Studies Point to Success in Some Patients
Highlights from the 2017 EULAR Congress MADRID—Scores on the Health Assessment Questionnaire for Rheumatoid Arthritis (HAQ) and C-reactive protein (CRP) levels were independent predictors of whether patients could be tapered successfully from a TNF inhibitor after having reached remission of their RA, according to findings presented in a session at the Annual European Congress of…
Predictive Value of Whole-Body MRI & Ultrasound Explored in EULAR Studies
Highlights from the 2017 EULAR Congress MADRID—Researchers say that whole-body MRI could yield an earlier diagnosis of spondyloarthropathy (SpA) in patients with early inflammatory joint symptoms, according to findings presented in a poster session at the Annual European Congress of Rheumatology (EULAR). The approach could lead to earlier treatment and better outcomes, they say. Investigators…
RA Treatments Show Mixed Results
Highlights from the 2017 EULAR Congress MADRID—The anti-IL6 “nanobody,” vobarilizumab, produced mixed results when used with methotrexate (MTX), compared with MTX and placebo, according to results of a 24-week, double-blind Phase 2b study of patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), which were presented in an abstract session at the Annual European Congress of Rheumatology (EULAR). The…
Tofacitinib with Methotrexate Not Inferior to Adalimumab with Methotrexate
Highlights from the 2017 EULAR Congress MADRID—Tofacitinib (a JAK inhibitor) used with methotrexate (MTX) is not inferior to adalimumab (a TNF inhibitor) plus MTX in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients who’ve had an inadequate response to MTX alone, according to results of a Phase 3B/4 trial presented in a session at the Annual European Congress of…

Effectiveness of Novel Therapies for Cutaneous SLE Explored
WASHINGTON, D.C.—A new, humanized anti-BDCA2 monoclonal antibody can trigger inhibition of the production of interferon, cytokines and chemokines derived from plasmacytoid dendritic cells in patients with cutaneous systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), according to research presented at the 2016 ACR/ARHP Annual Meeting. The findings were discussed during a session on SLE treatment, drug adherence and the…
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