Clinicians should not rely on glucocorticoids as a first-line treatment of SARD-ILD in patients with systemic sclerosis, according to a strong recommendation in a new ILD treatment guideline from the ACR and CHEST. The guideline is one of two addressing the screening, monitoring and treatment of patients with interstitial lung disease (ILD) secondary to systemic autoimmune rheumatic diseases (SARDs).
This past leap day (Feb. 29), Kai Sun, MD, MS, gave birth to her third child, a daughter named Chloe Gayoung Paik. What makes her daughter’s birth so unusual is that Dr. Sun, an assistant professor in Medicine at Duke University, Durham, NC, is also a leapling (or leaper). She was also born on Feb….
At the end of 2023, the Society for Cardiovascular Pathology (SCVP) published consensus guidelines on the diagnostic approach to temporal artery biopsy.1 Through this publication, SCVP hopes to bring more uniformity to the processing, interpretation and reporting of these specimens, taking into consideration the most up-to-date literature available. These guidelines have obvious impact on clinical…
“I think we learn from medicine everywhere that it is, at its heart, a human endeavor, requiring good science but also a limitless curiosity and interest in your fellow human being, and that the physician-patient relationship is key; all else follows from it.”1 These profound words from Abraham Verghese, MD, MACP, Linda R. Meier…
One of the great joys of rheumatology is that it prioritizes systems-based thinking. Whether integrating data from radiographic imaging or piecing together a puzzling case of autoimmunity, rheumatologists are tasked with understanding how systems fundamentally work. In fact, this emphasis on systems-based thinking is often what draws and keeps the best and smartest physicians within…
During the height of the pandemic four years ago, I took every precaution to avoid, or at the very least, delay contracting COVID-19. I religiously wore a mask in all public settings, I washed my hands so frequently that my skin became dry and cracked, and I studiously maintained a six-foot distance from others. But…
Regaining a sense of control, limiting responsibilities and engaging in mindfulness can help rheumatologists manage their mental health needs. Rheumatologists should also address the mental health concerns raised by their patients. Here are insights from a psychiatrist/rheumatologist.
The ACR is actively monitoring more than 60 pieces of legislation, focusing on such key issues as copay accumulators, utilization management reform, gold card programs and other emerging concerns. Two states have passed utilization management reform bills this year.
“I’m actually from Iowa. Where do you hail from?” I replied, in the friendliest tone I could muster. Many readers may already know the context, but I’ll rewind a few moments to clear up any ambiguity. I was in clinic and talking with a kind lady with joint pain. While I was in the middle…
Patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) often face many concerns, fears and uncertainties that render “treatment decision making very difficult,” says Jasvinder Singh, MD, MPH, professor of medicine and epidemiology at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. Often these patients, who tend to be women from minority groups, “do not have access to easily understandable…