Granulomatosis with polyangiitis (GPA) is a small vessel vasculitis associated with anti-neutrophil cytoplasmic antibodies (C-ANCA), specifically proteinase 3 (PR3) ANCA. GPA classically presents with multi-organ involvement. The first description of GPA defined a triad of features: 1) systemic necrotizing angiitis, 2) necrotizing inflammation of the respiratory tract and 3) necrotizing glomerulonephritis.1 Few cases of digital…
Dr. Jens Thiel provided a detailed overview of specific treatments for patients with immunoglobulin A (IgA) vasculitis and IgA nephropathy, highlighting treatments in early clinical trials.
Shrinking lung syndrome (SLS) is a rare cause of dyspnea that has been most commonly described in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), but is also found in systemic sclerosis, Sjögren’s disease and rheumatoid arthritis. Shrinking lung syndrome is characterized by a restrictive pattern on lung spirometry, despite normal lung parenchyma, and an elevated diaphragm.1…
Magdalena “Maggie” Cadet, MD, a rheumatologist in New York City, remembers learning about the relationship between physical activity and bone health at a young age. She was 5 years old when she first began taking ballet, jazz and tap-dancing lessons. At 9, she became a competitive figure skater and practiced both dance and ice skating…
A school science project demonstrates that flipbooks can be a useful educational tool for patients and their families to learn about rheumatic conditions and their treatment.
Methotrexate—an affordable, established drug for rheumatoid arthritis—may also be helpful for patients suffering from osteoarthritis (OA) of the hand, a recent study reports.1 Treatment of hand OA and inflammation with 20 mg of methotrexate for six months had a moderate, but potentially clinically meaningful, effect on reducing pain and stiffness in patients with symptomatic hand…
“I think we learn from medicine everywhere that it is, at its heart, a human endeavor, requiring good science but also a limitless curiosity and interest in your fellow human being, and that the physician-patient relationship is key; all else follows from it.”1 These profound words from Abraham Verghese, MD, MACP, Linda R. Meier…
The FDA has accepted applications for three new indications for bimekizumab-bkzx, a humanized interleukin (IL) 17A and IL-17F antagonist: psoriatic arthritis, non-radiographic axial spondyloarthritis and ankylosing spondylitis.
Rheumatology fellow Audrey Liu, MD, describes the excitement and empowerment of seeing first-hand the real-world impact of advocating for policies that support providers and patients.
Novice writers often wait months, sometimes even years, before their first piece is published. However, Usman T. Malik, MBBS, shares a different experience. His letter to the editor of Bachon ka Pakistan, a Pakistani children’s publication, was published shortly after being submitted. He was just 7 years old. Dr. Malik is now an assistant professor…