Research has shown that anticonvulsants are teratogens and pose a risk for fetal malformations. Meadow was the first to note a possible link between congenital abnormalities and maternal use of anticonvulsive drug in 1968.1 In 1974, Barr et al noted hypoplasia and irregular ossification of the digital distal phalanges with nail dystrophy in children born to…
You may say the 30 million Americans with osteoarthritis (OA) are walking around with a Band-aid—or so it seems.1 That’s because there’s no actual cure for this disabling condition. However, an international group of scientists is making headway on a method of eliminating aging—senescent—cells as a way to prevent or even reverse OA. Cartilage Disappears,…
The Rheumatology Research Foundation is now offering the Rheumatology Future Physician-Scientist Award to enhance the training of promising MD/PhD or DO/PhD students who intend to become physician-scientists. As part of the Foundation’s work to recruit and train the next generation of rheumatology professionals, the award supports the nation’s top emerging physician-scientists. S. Louis Bridges Jr., MD,…
It seems like yesterday I was asked to write my first presidential column, and here I am penning my last. It’s incredible how fast the time goes and yet how much gets done. That progress is made possible by the dedicated and talented group of ACR volunteers and staff. This year, the College has had…
To determine if varus thrust, a bowing out of the knee during gait (i.e., the first appearance or worsening of varus alignment during stance), is associated with incident and progressive knee osteoarthritis (OA), these researchers undertook an Osteoarthritis Initiative ancillary study. They also considered hypothesized associations adjusted for static alignment, anticipating some attenuation. Methods: Gait…
A stroll through downtown Stockholm presents a quintessential picture of an active community, with most people biking or walking as their preferred mode of travel. Yet children in Sweden who live with juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA)—currently estimated at around 64 of every 100,000—don’t always engage in this active lifestyle.1 Maura Daly Iversen, PT, DPT, SD,…
‘Living’ Pelvis in the Guinness Book of World Records Shashank Akerkar, MD, an ACR fellow and rheumatoid arthritis specialist at the Mumbai Arthritis Clinic and Research Center in India, found a unique way to draw attention to ankylosing spondylitis (AS). He persuaded 425 patients, mostly those suffering from AS or affected by lupus or rheumatoid…
To correctly address a problem, one must have a handle on its nuances—a clear understanding of what is linked and how. And thus far, when it comes to lupus, we haven’t reached the point of understanding those intricacies. Things are heading in the right direction, however, with two new studies that get us much closer…
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…
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…