Guidance

Subcategories:Ethics Legal Updates Legislation & Advocacy Research Rheum

Figure 2: High-resolution computed tomography showed evidence of interstitial lung disease.

High-resolution computed tomography shows evidence of ILD.

The ACR/CHEST ILD Guidelines in Practice, a video
In collaboration with the American College of Chest Physicians, the ACR released two new comprehensive guidelines aimed at improving the screening, monitoring, and treatment of patients with interstitial lung disease (ILD) secondary to systemic autoimmune rheumatic diseases (SARDs). Recently, Sindhu R. Johnson, MD, PhD, professor of medicine at the University of Toronto, Canada, director of the Toronto Scleroderma Program and principal investigator for the guideline, and Elana J. Bernstein, MD, MSc, Florence Irving associate professor of medicine in the Division of Rheumatology at Columbia University, New York City, and co-first author, presented a webinar to talk about how the guidelines were developed and present some of the recommendations and their rationale: Watch the recording now!

Highlights from ACR Convergence’s Late-Breaking Abstracts

Samantha C. Shapiro, MD | February 2, 2022

COVID-19 vaccination, treatments for rheumatic disease and more—the Late-Breaking Abstracts session of ACR Convergence 2021 highlighted six studies with implications for rheumatology.

Risk of IBD in Patients with Psoriasis, PsA & Ankylosing Spondylitis Starting IL-17 Inhibitors

Arthritis & Rheumatology | February 2, 2022

In February A&R, Penso et al. reported on the results of their study, which explored whether patients with psoriasis, PsA and AS have a higher risk of developing IBD when treated with an IL-17 inhibitor compared with apremilast, a phosphodiesterase 4 (PDE4) inhibitor, or etanercept, a TNF inhibitor.

Partnership Amplifies Advocacy Reach

From the College | January 23, 2022

Working with the AMA provides a megaphone to amplify rheumatology’s voice at both federal and state levels. This year is the AMA’s next five-year membership review. Join the AMA or renew your membership now to keep the ACR represented in AMA policy bodies.

ACR Insurance Subcommittee Chair Encourages Member Engagement

Carina Stanton | January 20, 2022

Rheumatology practices have a voice in payer advocacy through the Insurance Subcommittee of the ACR’s Committee on Rheumatologic Care.

Defining Administration Complexity by the Drug, Not the Diagnosis

Mary Beth Nierengarten | January 10, 2022

Enabling rheumatology practices to use complex administration codes for biologic drugs is critical for maintaining patient access to essential therapies.

The Power of Advocacy

Blair Solow, MD | January 10, 2022

In 1916, a handful of conservation advocates successfully lobbied Congress to create the National Park Service, which now protects more than 85 million acres of U.S. land. Dedicated rheumatology advocacy has lasting effects, too, as evidenced by several policy wins in 2021 and efforts underway for 2022.

Ethics Forum: Vaccine Mandates

The ACR Committee on Ethics & Conflict of Interest | January 10, 2022

With the ongoing COVID‑19 pandemic, several tools and strategies have been developed and implemented to reduce the spread of disease. These include social distancing, adequate ventilation, masks, monoclonal antibody treatment and vaccination.1 As of December 2021, 60% of all Americans have been fully vaccinated, and 8 in 10 adults in the U.S. have received at…

Study: Pegloticase & Methotrexate Co-Treatment Helps Uncontrolled Gout

Vanessa Caceres | January 10, 2022

A larger proportion of patients with gout had a therapeutic response at six months when treated with methotrexate and pegloticase than with pegloticase alone, according to results from the multi-center, open-label MIRROR (methotrexate to increase response rates in patients with uncontrolled gout receiving KRYSTEXXA) study, recently published in the Journal of Rheumatology.1 The MIRROR study…

State Legislative Issues to Watch in 2022

Joseph Cantrell, JD | January 7, 2022

States increasingly take the lead on issues critical to our members and the field of rheumatology, including copay accumulator bans, white bagging restrictions, prior authorization and drug pricing.

COVID-19 Vaccination in Patients with Rheumatic Disease

Arthritis & Rheumatology | January 5, 2022

In January A&R, Simon et al. report a study to assess humoral and cellular immune responses after infection with, or vaccination against, SARS-CoV-2 in patients with B cell depletion and controls who are B cell competent, finding that B cell depletion completely blocks humoral but not T cell SARS-CoV-2 vaccination response. In the same issue, Connolly et al. evaluated disease flare and post-vaccination reactions in patients with rheumatic and musculoskeletal diseases following messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccination.