Translational research is designed to investigate a particular disease process to achieve an improved outcome for patients. Here are some insights into how to bring together the right people for a research team and keep that team focused…


Translational research is designed to investigate a particular disease process to achieve an improved outcome for patients. Here are some insights into how to bring together the right people for a research team and keep that team focused…

It happens every day. A new email pops up in a researcher’s in-box from a journal with a seemingly familiar name and an invitation to publish a research paper, present at a meeting or, perhaps, serve on an editorial board. Like many of her colleagues, Marian Hannan, DSc, MPH, professor of medicine at Harvard Medical…

Catherine Kolonko |
According to a large cohort study of pediatric patients, rituximab use is on the rise in the treatment of children diagnosed with vasculitis. Treatment with cyclophosphamide remains common, but it’s beginning to wane. Dialysis and mechanical ventilation also remain common, the study indicates. The retrospective study of hospitalized children in the U.S. included the largest…

When Abby Abelson, MD, FACR, chair of the Department of Rheumatology and Immunologic Disease at Cleveland Clinic, was in medical school, she enjoyed nearly every one of her rotations. But it was the rheumatology patients who inspired her the most. “I saw they had challenges in their lives that they were able to triumph over,”…
Take the challenge. 1. B—No. CPT 99358, prolonged evaluation and management service can be billed before or after direct patient care, first hour or 99539 —each additional 30 minutes (list separately in addition to code for prolonged service). This code cannot be used to bill a higher level E/M visit code. According to 2017 CPT:…

In 2010, Thomas Bartow, MD, FACP, finally ran out of excuses. Ever since high school, he had wanted to join the military. But too many things got in the way—like attending medical school at State University of New York at Stony Brook. After graduation in 1980, he performed his residency in internal medicine at Rush-Presbyterian-St….

Kelly April Tyrrell |
When a young patient arrives at a clinic complaining of knee pain with clicking or popping, a meniscal tear is often the culprit. “In young [people], there’s a pretty classic presentation of meniscal tear, with clicking and other mechanical symptoms, because the tear rubs up against different tissues,” says Jeffrey Katz, MD, MSc, a rheumatologist…

Nan Yang, PharmD, & Kurt Oelke, MD, on behalf of the ARHP Practice Committee |
Two decades have passed since the first biologic disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drug (bDMARD) was approved. Studies on the long-term use of biologics in different disease states, such as for cardiovascular disease (CVD) and malignancy, as well as for knee/hip replacement, reveal some encouraging news. In clinical trials, bDMARDs have been shown to increase the risk of…

Bisphosphonate Drug Holidays Drug holidays are common for patients on bisphosphonate therapy. Often, these breaks in treatment are related to known U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) warnings and drug class adverse effects. Currently, data on fracture risk related to drug holidays are limited. In recent research highlighted at the 2017 ACR/ARHP Annual Meeting ,…

Usman T. Malik, MBBS |
The Presentation A pale, quiet woman—her mother—wheeled the girl into my clinic. It was a blistering Florida day, and the girl was shivering. She glanced up at me when I said hello and asked her name. “Hi,” she said, giving me a broad smile. Her smile was the only broad thing about her. Her elbows…