In the past decade, there has been a clear demand for and a significant increase in online learning. This was clearly documented in the 2013 report, Changing Course: Ten Years of Tracking Online Education in the United States.1 The report finding demonstrated that 6.7 million students were taking at least one online course, a marked…
NEW YORK (Reuters Health)—The anti-interleukin-17A monoclonal antibody secukinumab improves signs and symptoms in patients with psoriatic arthritis, according to results from Novartis’ FUTURE 2 trial. In earlier studies, secukinumab has demonstrated superior effectiveness to placebo and etanercept in improving the signs and symptoms of psoriasis. Dr. Iain B. McInnes from the University of Glasgow in…
Telling a patient that he or she has been diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), ankylosing spondylitis, fibromyalgia or another debilitating, painful and/or chronic condition can be upsetting for a patient to hear and difficult for a rheumatologist to convey. Given this, it’s important to prepare for the appointment. “Take a few minutes beforehand to contemplate…
I have spent my entire academic career as a clinical investigator and have grown to recognize the importance of a strong and vibrant rheumatology workforce. However, I am deeply concerned about our ability as a subspecialty to sustain our research enterprise and take advantage of the modern breakthroughs in science. The reduction in federal funding…
CHICAGO—With the approval of the Jak inhibitors (i.e., jakinibs) tofacitinib and ruxolitinib—and others being investigated—rheumatologists need to arm themselves with an understanding of these drugs so they can think critically when evaluating them and deciding how to use them, said John O’Shea, MD, chief of the Molecular Immunology and Inflammation Branch of and scientific director…
View the question. Findings/Diagnosis The AP radiograph of the left shoulder (see Figure 1) shows erosions of the proximal humeral and glenoid articular surfaces (black arrows) without joint-space narrowing. There is a well-defined marginal erosion with overhanging edge at the junction of the proximal humeral articular surface and rotator cuff insertion on the greater tuberosity (ellipse)….
ROME, Italy—Even with classification criteria that have been updated and refined over time, rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is still a diagnosis that ultimately has to be made with clinical judgment, said Ronald van Vollenhoven, MD, PhD, professor of medicine and chief of clinical therapy research in inflammatory diseases at the Karolinska University in Sweden. His remarks…
Clinical Vignette A 45-year-old woman with long-standing asthma and chronic sinusitis has new-onset peripheral neuropathy, arthralgias, fatigue, progressive dyspnea and a nonproductive cough. She has never smoked and has no environmental exposures. Her medications include an albuterol metered-dose inhaler (which she uses daily); an inhaled corticosteroid, montelukast; and ibuprofen (which she takes occasionally). She is…
View the question. Findings/Diagnosis The radiographs demonstrate diffuse sheetlike and tumefactive calcifications throughout the subcutaneous tissues, muscle and fascia of the pelvis and right hand. The underlying bones and joint spaces appear normal. The differential diagnosis for soft tissue calcification is extensive and includes metabolic disturbances (particularly of calcium and phosphate), trauma (e.g., injection sites,…
In late March 2012, I awoke with pain in my left hand. I had difficulty moving my metacarpophalangeal (MCP) joints. They did not move smoothly, but clunked. As I repeatedly attempted to open and close my hand, I realized that I had morning stiffness. As the pain and stiffness gradually improved over the next hour,…