Table stakes. It took me a moment to register what they were talking about. I was listening to Pod Save America, a wildly popular podcast put together by some of Barack Obama’s former speechwriters. It is, I imagine, what an MSNBC podcast might sound like if Rachel Maddow and Chris Hayes were allowed to swear….
Although antimitochondrial antibodies are present in SLE patients, researchers have has difficulty investigating the phenomenon due to barriers in isolating pure mitochondria. The study describes a technique that allows for such an investigation and provides insight into how the adaptive immune system recognizes mitochondrial organelles…
As a physician, I am an advocate. I am an advocate for my patients individually and collectively, and I am an advocate for my field: pediatric rheumatology. My own experiences as a patient drive me to integrate my patients’ perspectives into my medical decision making, and although my academic training has prepared me to best…
CHICAGO—Rheumatology healthcare providers should embrace collaborative approaches to manage chronic musculoskeletal pain in older adult patients, including models of care that involve multiple providers, patients and their caregivers. That was the message delivered by two speakers in the Interdisciplinary Management of Chronic MusculoÂskeletal Pain in Older Adults session at the 2018 ACR/ARHP Annual Meeting. “As…
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…
In March 1987, Mark Andrejeski moved from Columbus, Ohio, to Atlanta to lead a brand-new organization: the American Rheumatism Association (ARA). The professional association of rheumatologists had separated from the Arthritis Foundation 15 months earlier. “Initially, I was just trying to make sure the organization survived,” says Mr. Andrejeski, who studied business management and economics…
We all know words can be powerful. They often resonate with several levels of meaning, enriching our understanding and broadening our perspective. Take the word promise, for example. It implies responsibility, as in, “We promise to do it.” It is also imbued with hope, as in “This idea has great promise.” At the ACR we…
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 options, 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…
CHICAGO—The Gout and Hyperuricemia scientific session at the 2018 ACR/ARHP Annual Meeting opened with a talk by Tony R. Merriman, PhD, a research professor at the University of Otago, New Zealand. His talk focused on molecular epidemiology, with an emphasis on the interactions between genes and environmental exposures, and their contributions to gout. Dr. Merriman…
CHICAGO—Antiphospholipid antibody syndrome (APS) mainly affects young women, but can also affect men. APS patients test positive for multiple antibodies, including lupus anticoagulant (LAC), anti-cardiolipin and/or anti-beta2-glycoprotein I. These antibodies are diagnostic of APS, and they place the patient at increased risk for thrombosis and, in women, pregnancy morbidity. Women with LAC or those who…