Brian Le, MD, a rheumatology fellow at the Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University (MCG), credits an excellent mentor and two Rheumatology Research Foundation preceptorships with guiding his career toward rheumatology. “Working with Dr. Laura Carbone has opened up a lot of doors for me,” says Dr. Le. “I wouldn’t have such a great relationship with…
Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall Humpty Dumpty had a great fall All the king’s horses and all the king’s men Couldn’t put Humpty together again. —Mother Goose I feel like a female Humpty Dumpty. Recently I took a great fall, and now I am in the process of being put together again. I was…
Denosumab’s labeling now says a patient’s risk of developing osteonecrosis of the jaw may increase with prolonged exposure…
NEW YORK (Reuters Health)—Gastrointestinal side effects are the most common reason osteoporotic women cite for nonadherence to oral bisphosphonate therapy, according to a new survey. “Our findings highlight the importance of low tolerability to nonadherence with osteoporosis therapy and underlines patients’ poor awareness and suboptimal physicians’ involvement in conveying the importance of this therapy,” Dr….
Bone health has been successfully improved by using probiotics to influence the gut microbiome in postmenopausal women with osteoporosis. New research has gained insight into this process, uncovering that sex steroid depletion increases gut permeability resulting in inflammation and pathology in mice. Treatment with probiotics also prevents this increase in gut permeability and bone loss associated with sex steroid depletion…
Etanercept Submitted for Chronic, Severe Plaque Psoriasis in Children The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has accepted the supplemental Biologics License Application for etanercept (Enbrel) for treating pediatric patients with chronic, severe plaque psoriasis.1 The application was submitted in early January 2016 and is based on results of a one-year Phase 3 study with…
Spotting the signs of autoimmunity as early as possible is often viewed as a positive goal for rheumatologic research. The premise: Patients may begin treatment years before their disease is active and destroying joints and tissue. Although much progress has been made in identifying early stages of rheumatoid arthritis pathogenesis, the clues are not as…
Take the challenge. CPT: 99213-25, 77085 ICD-10: Diagnosis M81.0, Z79.52 The encounter is coded as 9913 as follows: History—The history of the present illness was extended. The review of systems was complete, and the past medical history was documented. This makes the history detailed. Examination—The examination was expanded problem focused. Medical decision making—The diagnosis was…
A 67-year-old female patient with Medicare returns to the office for a follow-up of her age-related osteoporosis. She states she has an achy pain in her left hip that lasts for 30–40 minutes in the morning. Currently, she has taken ibandronate sodium and alendronate sodium for the past year, and her pain level is a…
In a clinical trial, patients with osteoarthritis taking low-dose SoluMatrix meloxicam used less rescue medication to manage pain. Also, the FDA has issued a new warning against using oral ketoconazole off label to treat onychomycosis and fungal skin infections…