Dr. Sherine Gabriel Joins Board of Trustees In July, ACR Past President Sherine E. Gabriel, MD, MSc, joined the New York Academy of Medicine Board of Trustees. Dr. Gabriel is a distinguished professor and dean of Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School. As dean emerita of Mayo Medical School, Dr. Gabriel developed successful clinical research training and career development…
Systemic sclerosis (SSc) is a disease characterized by immunologic abnormalities, microvascular involvement and tissue fibrosis. In previous studies, 10-year survival rates ranged from 50–84%. However, there are concerns that these studies, using prevalent cohorts, are underestimating mortality. “While the prognosis of many rheumatic diseases has improved with the availability of more effective and targeted therapies,…
Total hip replacement (THR) surgery is an effective way to reduce pain and improve function in people with advanced hip osteoarthritis (OA). In light of aging populations, there’s a need to use contemporary, population-level data to plan for future service provision. In a study designed to compare THR data across countries, researchers demonstrated a significant increase in the overall use of and lifetime risk for THR from 2003 to 2013. Women consistently had a higher lifetime risk of surgery than men in all five countries studied, whereas men in all five countries demonstrated a significant increase in lifetime risk for THR over time…
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…