What happens when systemic sclerosis (SSc) overlaps with other systemic autoimmune rheumatic diseases? Patients with either diffuse cutaneous or limited cutaneous SSc sometimes develop systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) as well. A new, large cohort study published in the Journal of Rheumatology reveals details on the epidemiology, clinical signs and survival data of SSc-SLE overlap syndrome.1…
Over the past few years, biosimilars and other new drugs have been introduced to treat rheumatic illnesses. Some of the conditions we treat have numerous drug option; others have few or only off-label options. This series, “Rheumatology Drugs at a Glance,” provides streamlined information on the administration of biologic, biosimilar and other medications used to…
SEATTLE—At the first regional vasculitis patient conference ever held in the Pacific Northwest, a panoramic view of Mt. Rainier on a clear January morning set the tone for a day of optimistic talks about recent successes against the various forms of blood vessel inflammation. One attendee at the Jan. 12 conference, sponsored by the Vasculitis…
(Reuters Health)—For a wide range of diseases, diagnosis comes later in life for women than for men, according to a large Danish study. Researchers don’t know whether the later diagnoses are due to genetics, the environment, possible biases in the healthcare system—or some combination of reasons. The study of health data from 6.9 million Danish…
CHICAGO—The osteoporosis session at the 2018 ACR/ARHP Annual Meeting opened with a discussion by Kenneth Saag, MD, MSc, professor of medicine at the University of Alabama, Birmingham, in which he highlighted adverse events associated with osteoporosis medications. Dr. Saag began his presentation by emphasizing that, above all, the audience should keep in mind that the…
CHICAGO—John H. Stone, MD, MPH, director of clinical rheumatology at Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, took the stage at the 2018 ACR/ARHP Annual Meeting to present, for the first time, a draft of new classification criteria for IgG4-related disease (IgG4-RD), a project supported by both the ACR and EULAR. Even though it was the last day…
CHICAGO—David A. Isenberg, MD, academic director of rheumatology, University College London, presented the ACR Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) State-of-the-Art Symposium at the 2018 ACR/ARHP Annual Meeting. Dr. Isenberg began by noting lupus is now widely covered in the news, but singer Selena Gomez has probably done the most to increase awareness of the disease; her…
CHICAGO—At the 2018 ACR/ARHP Annual Meeting, Allen C. Steere, MD, delivered the Rheumatology Research Foundation Memorial Lecture honoring the late Charles M. Plotz, MD: Linking Gut Microbial Immunity with Autoimmunity in Joints in Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis. Dr. Steere is professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, Boston, and director of translational research in rheumatology…
CHICAGO—Because the epigenome has been implicated in a variety of rheumatic conditions, a Basic Research Conference was convened on Epigenetics in Immune-Mediated Disease in conjunction with the 2018 ACR/ARHP Annual Meeting. Melanie Ehrlich, PhD, professor of human genetics and genomics at Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, opened the conference. She has a long…
CHICAGO—Held during the 2018 ACR/ARHP Annual Meeting, the ACR Review Course covered a wide range of topics for rheumatologists—from advances in pain and rheumatic disease management to the intersection of rheumatology and neurology. Session speakers shared insights, as well as state-of-the-art approaches to diagnosis, management and treatment. Inflammatory Myopathies Julie J. Paik, MD, MHS, assistant…