Search results for: hospital

Does PTSD Increase Risk of RA for Women?

Arthritis Care & Research | March 1, 2016

Multiple studies have linked post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) to an increased risk of rheumatoid arthritis (RA), specifically in men. Using data from a 22-year cohort study, researchers were able to analyze the association between PTSD and the risk of RA in women. This large study builds on and expands previous findings by exploring whether the effects of PTSD differ for RA subtypes. As a secondary objective, researchers also examined smoking as a behavioral confounder and/or mediator in the relationship between PTSD and risk for RA…

Hidradenitis Suppurativa Tied to Higher Mortality

David Douglas | February 24, 2016

NEW YORK (Reuters Health)—Hidradenitis suppurativa (HS) is associated with a significantly increased risk of adverse cardiovascular (CV) outcomes and all-cause mortality, according to Danish researchers. HS is a chronic, inflammatory skin disease and is most common in women. It is typically diagnosed after long delays, Dr. Alexander Egeberg of the University of Copenhagen and colleagues…

Apremilast Proves Effective for PsA with Skin Involvement

Michele B. Kaufman, PharmD, BCGP | February 24, 2016

A recent Phase 3 clinical trial found apremilast safe and effective for treating patients with active psoriatic arthritis and skin symptoms who found conventional and biologic DMARDs ineffective…

Dermatology & Immunology: Skin Issues Can Present Challenges

Thomas R. Collins | February 23, 2016

SAN FRANCISCO—A 40-year-old woman shows up in the clinic with scarring alopecia, with an area of hyperpigmentation on the rim of her scalp, extending from just behind the temple to behind her ears. An examination with a dermatoscope shows hyperkeratotic follicular plugging. The case—in this example, the discoid form of cutaneous lupus erythematosus (DLE)—is one…

Route of Iron Replacement Doesn’t Impact IBD Activity, Quality of Life

Laura Newman | February 20, 2016

NEW YORK (Reuters Health)—The route of iron replacement therapy alters the gut microbiome and metabolomics in patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), but the route is unrelated to disease activity and quality of life, according to a new study. “Crohn’s disease patients are extremely fragile to disturbances and one might speculate about consequences in long-term…

Pfizer Unit to Pay $784.6 Million in Medicaid Rebate Settlement

Reuters Staff | February 19, 2016

(Reuters)—Pfizer Inc. said its Wyeth unit has agreed to pay $784.6 million to settle cases related to the calculation of Medicaid rebates for a gastric drug between 2001 and 2006. The claims alleged that Wyeth’s calculation of rebates for its proton pump inhibitor Protonix (pantoprazole) violated the Federal Civil False Claims Act and other laws…

Rheumatologist, Pain Physician Collaboration Vital for Better Pain Control

Vanessa Caceres | February 17, 2016

Chronic pain can be one of the biggest challenges that patients and their physicians face. Rheumatology patients are no stranger to pain, and when pain goes beyond the scope of what rheumatologists can treat, collaboration with a pain specialist is common. “I refer patients to pain management when there is no underlying inflammatory condition, usual…

What Listening to Lungs Might Teach About Rheumatic Disease

Simon M. Helfgott, MD | February 17, 2016

One of your first clinical assignments as a medical student was likely to have been the lung exam. Its key descriptors may still resonate in your mind: inspection, palpation, percussion and auscultation. Proudly parading down the hospital corridors, your newly purchased stethoscope snugly tucked inside your lab coat pocket, you carefully place its cold metal…

APS: What Rheumatologists Should Know about Hughes Syndrome

Graham R.V. Hughes, MD, FRCP | February 17, 2016

The problem that dogs the work of all of those treating patients with antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) is the apparent lack of knowledge of the syndrome, both by the general public, as well as by swaths of the medical fraternity. Perhaps it was ever thus—a syndrome less than 40 years old could be described as new,…

Case Study in Dermatology: Tender Papules on Elbows, Hands in RA

Drew Kurtzman, MD, & Timothy McCalmont, MD, with Ruth Ann Vleugels, MD, MPH, & Joseph F. Merola, MD, MMSc | February 17, 2016

The Case A 41-year-old woman was referred to the dermatology clinic for a three-month history of tender lesions on her elbows and around the joints of her hands. Her medical history was notable for seropositive, non-erosive rheumatoid arthritis (RA), which was being treated with 5 mg prednisone daily, 10 mg methotrexate weekly by mouth, 200…