Antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) is an autoimmune condition characterized by hypercoagulability often manifested as recurrent thrombosis or pregnancy complications, with persistently circulating antiphospholipid (aPL) antibodies or lupus anticoagulant. Catastrophic APS (CAPS), also known as Asherson syndrome, occurs in less than 1% of cases of APS and involves occlusive microangiopathy in at least three organ systems.1 Case…
In an interview with The Rheumatologist, J. Larry Jameson, MD, PhD, discusses the benefits and complications of precision medicine for rheumatologists and their patients, including advances in genetics, diagnostic tools and targeted treatments…
For 12 months, two studies examined the use of lesinurad in combination with allopurinol to treat gout, with patients achieving reduced serum uric acid levels and demonstrating no severe toxicity.
The ICD-10 page on the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) website features a countdown clock that shows the time left until Oct. 1, 2015, the date on which compliance with the new code set becomes mandatory. By the time this issue goes to press, the clock will read 90 or fewer days. Time…
Full disclosure: I am not a rabid fan of dogs. None rank among my best friends. Perhaps my antipathy stems from a memorable childhood event, when I was chased down the street where I lived by a neighbor’s large and not-so-friendly hound. He seemed to be twice my size, and this explains why I may…
NEW YORK (Reuters Health)—Dose optimization of infliximab is needed much earlier in ulcerative colitis than in Crohn’s disease, a single-center retrospective study reveals. “We compared the rates of dose increases over a fairly lengthy period of time,” said Dr. Mark Silverberg, the study’s senior author from the Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto. “Patients with ulcerative…
ROME, Italy—Fatigue, a problem experienced frequently by patients with rheumatic diseases, is best thought of as a survival mechanism and as a single phenomenon, not a condition that comes in a variety of forms, an expert said in a session at EULAR 2015, the annual congress of the European League Against Rheumatism (EULAR). Gene Regulated…
In an observational study, physicians found that systemic rheumatic disease exacerbation and treatment-related infections were often related to the lungs…
(Reuters Health)—People suffering from osteoarthritis, the most common type of joint inflammation, are more likely to have knee pain when they also have difficulty getting enough sleep, a study suggests. Researchers found that people with knee osteoarthritis and insomnia were also more likely to suffer from a nervous system disorder called “central sensitization” that makes…
Sleep disturbance is an important medical problem, requiring intervention, not simply to reduce latency to its onset, but to ensure achievement of the depth of sleep that has been documented to restore homeostasis and prevent the falls that are responsible for so much morbidity and mortality.1 Sleep disturbance is present in 50% of people over…