A recent study found that baricitinib improved symptoms of arthritis and rash in patients with active SLE, while maintaining a safety profile consistent with previous findings…


A recent study found that baricitinib improved symptoms of arthritis and rash in patients with active SLE, while maintaining a safety profile consistent with previous findings…
Scenario 1 History: A 45-year-old male patient with sero-negative rheumatoid arthritis affecting multiple sites, but with no organ or systems involvement, comes for a follow-up visit. The patient reports swelling of the left knee with throbbing left knee pain. He rates the severity of his pain at an 8 on a 10-point scale. The pain…

Rheumatologists and orthopedic surgeons must frequently collaborate to provide optimal patient care. Sometimes, they may even work at the same practice and form a care team for easy collaboration. Still, patient management from both specialties can be challenging, and specialists from both sides can learn from each other. How Crossover Starts Rheumatologists and orthopedic surgeons…

Harry E. Subramanian, Ravi Sutaria, MD, & Fotios Koumpouras, MD |
Based on the classification system developed by the Chapel Hill Consensus Conference, anti-neutrophil cytoplasmic antibody (ANCA) associated vasculitis is defined as a necrotizing vasculitis involving small vessels that is associated with myeloperoxidase (MPO) ANCA or proteinase 3 (PR3) ANCA and displays minimal immune deposits. The mechanism behind the pathogenesis of ANCA-associated vasculitis is not fully…

Join us in Chicago for the 2018 ACR/ARHP Annual Meeting on Oct. 19–24. Register now to save; advance registration rates end Oct. 3. High-Impact Learning Starts with Pre-Meeting Courses Pre-meeting courses offer attendees unique learning opportunities in specific topic areas. The pre-meeting courses will be held at McCormick Place Oct. 19–20. No matter your area…

When Jeanne Scott first entered nursing school, she planned to become a women’s health nurse practitioner. She was not expecting her final clinical placement in rheumatology to change the entire course of her career. “Truthfully, I did not understand what rheumatology practitioners did until this introduction to the field,” says Ms. Scott, who describes being…

Gregory C. Gardner, MD, FACP |
Many rheumatology patients have complex conditions and require the added expertise of colleagues in other fields, such as pulmonology, neurology or dermatology. This is even more true when patients with complex care issues are referred to academic medical centers. At such centers, patients often travel hours for an appointment and see more than one provider….

Jeffrey A. Sparks, MD, MMSc, & Kevin D. Deane, MD, PhD |
Preventing adverse outcomes in individuals who have rheumatic diseases is a daily goal for rheumatologists. For example, rheumatologists prescribe medications and perform screening to prevent erosions in rheumatoid arthritis (RA), renal failure in systemic lupus erythematosus and flares across all diseases. Many of these actions are classified as secondary or tertiary prevention, because individuals have…

“Wait. I can explain.” One could imagine this phrase coming up under many conditions in daily life. When I first became a physician, however, I would never have expected to use this phrase in my clinic. In medical school, I was taught the importance of dialogue in establishing a relationship with a patient. Statistics indicate…

Joseph L. Green, DO |
A 54-year-old woman is establishing care in your clinic after retirement of her previous rheumatologist. Your review of her records suggests that she was diagnosed with systemic lupus erythematosus seven years ago on the basis of symptoms of body pain and fatigue, and serologic evidence of positive ANA 1:40 (speckled) and borderline anti-SSB antibody. She…