SAN FRANCISCO—“Interstitial lung disease is the last bastion of great medicine,” according to Paul Noble, MD, chair, Department of Medicine, director, Women’s Guild Lung Institute, Vera and Paul Guerin Distinguished Chair in Pulmonary Medicine, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles. Making it great medicine, he said, are the many things still unknown about this disease. In…
SAN FRANCISCO—Two hundred years ago, physicians knew nothing about what caused various forms of arthritis. Today, we have more clues about what may trigger rheumatic diseases, but still can’t pinpoint the culprits that set scores of inflammatory conditions in motion. Researchers discussed some of the background and recent findings that point to what immunologists call…
SAN FRANCISCO—Let’s say your radiologist comes to you and says that an angiogram gives a diagnosis of CNS vasculitis on four patients, all with acute onset of headache and stroke: One is a 25-year-old woman who is three months pregnant. Another is a 50-year-old man using excessive doses of nasal decongestants. Another is a 40-year-old…
Nearly 150 of the Rheumatology Research Foundation’s most generous supporters gathered in November during the 2015 ACR/ARHP Annual Meeting for the Donors of Merit recognition event. In celebration of the Foundation’s 30th Anniversary in 2015, the event reflected on the journey to advance treatments and improve patient care. The Foundation’s president, David Karp, MD, PhD,…
“The lived experience with RA is itself a valuable form of expertise,” writes Dr. Liana Fraenkel, MD, MPH, and her colleagues in their latest research. To examine the value of this expertise and how it can be incorporated into clinical practice guidelines, researchers developed 18 questions for which two panels—one physician dominated and one comprising entirely patients—would develop recommendations. For a majority of these questions, the patient panel made the same recommendations as the physician panel, with similar recommendation strengths…
The Rheumatology Research Foundation has infused more than $130 million into rheumatology research, education and training since it was established in 1985. The Foundation’s efforts have been greatly enhanced by the support of Corporate Roundtable (CRT) members. The CRT is a dynamic partnership between the Foundation and members of the pharmaceutical industry committed to furthering…
Meet the Foundation’s incoming president, Eric L. Matteson, MD, MPH. Dr. Matteson trained in rheumatology at the University of Michigan and Mayo Graduate School of Medicine, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine. He later earned his Master of Public Health in epidemiology at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. Dr. Matteson currently works as the…
A recent study examined the outcomes of care for RA patients provided by nurse practitioners or physician assistants working in tandem with rheumatologists, compared with that provided exclusively by rheumatologists. Over the two-year course of the study, results indicated that not only was care not compromised, but RA disease activity control may actually have been slightly better in these practices…
“Treat to target regardless of disease activity level” tops the list of recommendations for both early and established RA in the 2015 Guideline for the Treatment of Rheumatoid Arthritis. The guideline addresses six major topics, including DMARDs, glucocorticoids and biologics, and includes 74 recommendations. These recommendations are not prescriptive, and the treatment decisions should be made by physicians and patients together…
Seven students pursuing rheumatology-related careers will head to San Francisco in November on a Student and Resident ACR/ARHP Annual Meeting Scholarship—awards that are open to students and residents from states that are underserved by rheumatology professionals. The Rheumatology Research Foundation has awarded the students $750–1,500 toward travel expenses and registration for the ACR/ARHP Annual Meeting,…