During the 2020 ACR State-of-the-Art Clinical Symposium, Zoltán Szekanecz, MD, PhD, addressed the risks of vascular disease and how to manage them in patients with rheumatic diseases.
The ACR has released clinical guidance documents for pediatric patients with rheumatic disease in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, including one for multi-system inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C). Jay Mehta, MD, MS, an attending physician in the Division of Rheumatology and director of the Pediatric Rheumatology Fellowship at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP),…
Looking back on last year’s ACR/ARP annual meeting, I recall the energy and excitement of attendees as they participated in sessions covering the latest scientific concepts and new directions in our field. In 2019, we piloted a number of innovative ways to modernize and enhance future ACR meetings, with the promise of delivering a transformed…
Note: This article was updated July 21 to add recommendations on restarting biologics following COVID-19. On April 29, the ACR released Guidance for the Management of Adult Patients with Rheumatic Disease During the COVID‐19 Pandemic and later updated the guidance for publication in Arthritis & Rheumatology. The recommendations address various treatment options and provide general…
A 61-year-old Caucasian woman with a history of seropositive rheumatoid arthritis (RA) was hospitalized for a several-month history of progressively worsening left ankle pain and swelling. She had been unable to bear weight on her left leg for several days and did not notice improvement in symptoms with 20 mg of prednisone daily, which she…
At the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine Division of Rheumatology, Baltimore, registered nurses (RNs) are an integral aspect of the rheumatology fellowship program. This gives the fellows information and insight into areas of practice they might not otherwise receive. “This [practice] is a result of our very strong belief that an integrated and interdisciplinary approach,…
The recommendations for MIS-C focus on general guidance, diagnostic evaluation and therapy options, as well as comparing and contrasting the features of MIS-C and Kawasaki disease.
An analysis of data from the COVID-19 Global Rheumatology Alliance registry shows that use of disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs or non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs did not increase the risk of hospitalization for COVID-19 patients with rheumatic disease, but steroid use did.