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…
The FDA has approved the first interchangeable biosimilars for denosumab.
In a phase 3 trial, treatment with VX-548 led to statistically and clinically significant improvements in pain compared with placebo.
For the 2023 Image Competition, the ACR sought images representing a diverse range of patients with idiopathic inflammatory myopathies (IIMs) or IIM mimics. Pneumomediastinum & Ulcerative Cutaneous Dermatomyositis These images depict a 22-year-old woman with a recent diagnosis of anti-melanoma differentiation-associated gene 5 (MDA-5) antibody dermatomyositis who sought evaluation of worsening skin rashes and pleuritic…
About 30 years ago, early in his career as a rheumatologist, Dirkjan van Schaardenburg, PhD, says patients with osteoarthritis experienced terrible problems with inflammation. The landscape has improved to the point that “people can live with it now,” he says. But they still need help. For example, osteoarthritis affects 7% of the global population, according…
Pachydermoperiostosis (PDP), also known as Touraine-Solente-Golé syndrome or primary hypertrophic osteoarthropathy, is a rare syndrome that can be inherited as autosomal dominant, autosomal recessive, or sporadically. This progressive disease primarily affects males, who tend to have more severe features than females. PDP usually occurs during adolescence, often starting around puberty.1 The main clinical features are…
Benjamin Widener, MD, FACP, has found a niche in community practice rheumatology in his hometown in Wyoming. As the lone rheumatologist serving the community, he has the opportunity to develop lasting therapeutic relationships.
Difficult-to-treat rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is defined as the failure of two or more classes of biologic or targeted synthetic disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs) to control active or progressive disease in patients with RA. Between 5 and 20% of patients with RA have difficult-to-treat RA.
A proposal for biosimilar use in the 2025 budget would allow substitution of any biosimilar for its reference product without an interchangeable designation. The hope is to increase biosimilar uptake, with the subsequent potential to increase product “competition, access and affordability.”1 In the 2025 budget proposal, the Biden administration noted that the legal distinction between…
Implicit bias can affect patient care at the physician level when they’re making treatment decisions and at the healthcare organization level when they’re choosing new hires. Here are insights into strategies rheumatologists can use to become aware of, and question, their implicit biases.