Despite challenges, private practice has many rewards, such as more autonomy, says Tien-I Karleen Su, MD, FACR, chair of the ACR’s Community Practice Council.

Despite challenges, private practice has many rewards, such as more autonomy, says Tien-I Karleen Su, MD, FACR, chair of the ACR’s Community Practice Council.
Community practice rheumatology brings with it certain challenges, but it also offers rewards, such as autonomy and the capacity to develop deep relationships with patients. Three rheumatologists discuss the challenges and rewards of private practice.
In January, the U.S. Food & Drug Administration approved indomethacin in an oral suspension, a generic version of Indocin Oral Suspension. The agency also issued a boxed warning and updated label for denosumab, warning of the risks of severe hypocalcemia in patients with chronic kidney disease.
In 59,970 twins aged 35 years or older, Magnusson et al. compared how much genetics contributes to osteoarthritis (OA) with the genetic contribution to other rheumatic/musculoskeletal diseases (RMDs) in the same population, while exploring the role of shared genetics in OA and other RMDs. The researchers used data from the Swedish Twin Registry, in addition to the Swedish National Patient Register. They concluded that the heritability (i.e., the total genetic contribution to a trait) of OA is relatively large compared with other rheumatic musculoskeletal diseases.
Desh Nepal, MD, Sebastian E. Sattui, MD, MS, & Michael Putman, MD, MS |
Originally posted Feb. 13, 2023; reposted in conjunction with publication of the PMR supplement to the February 2024 issue of The Rheumatologist. PHILADELPHIA—Polymyalgia rheumatica (PMR) is a chronic inflammatory condition that almost exclusively affects individuals older than 50.1 First described in 1888, PMR has been a recognized rheumatic disease since at least 1957. Diagnosing the…
Community practice rheumatology may be a less-followed path within the specialty, and it brings with it certain challenges. However, it also offers rewards, such as autonomy and deep relationships with patients. The Rheumatologist recently interviewed three community practice rheumatologists from around the U.S. to find out about their approaches to patient management, staffing and other…
Rheumatologists in community practices don’t have to abandon their research interests. The Rheumatologist recently interviewed three community practice rheumatologists from around the U.S. to find out their approaches to patient management, staffing and other areas of the practice. Here, they discuss their approach to incorporating research into their practice. At New England Rheumatology & Osteoporosis,…
In 1937, the Turkish physician Hulusi Behçet described a number of patients with relapsing aphthous ulcers in the mouth and over the genitalia, as well as hypopyon iritis. Since that time, the eponymous condition, known as Behçet’s disease, has been recognized as a multisystem vasculitis that can present with myriad other signs and symptoms. Although…
SAN DIEGO—Panelists at ACR Convergence 2023 debate the merits of IL-6 inhibitors vs. glucocorticoids for the initial treatment of giant cell arteritis (GCA) and polymyalgia rheumatica (PMR).
SAN DIEGO—Viral infections are a common cause of acute arthritis and, in general, tend to be short lived and are not usually associated with significant articular inflammation. Due to the prevalence of various viral infections across the globe, any patient with signs of early inflammatory arthritis (i.e., symptoms that have not yet lasted six weeks) should be evaluated for a possible infectious etiology, said Dr. Leonard Calabrese in the Review Course at ACR Convergence 2023.