It is an exciting time in the world of vasculitis research. More clinical studies and trials are being conducted now than at any time in history. In the past ten years, four drugs have been approved by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) and other regulatory agencies specifically for the treatment of vasculitis: Rituximab…
As founder and president of a large rheumatology group, Howard M. Busch, DO, says the pandemic has had a limited financial effect on many of the network’s clinics. Communication and technology have been key to adapting to the needs of patients and connecting with other providers during this critical time.
A young man sits down at my COVID-19 immunization station at Maine Medical Center and stares resolutely ahead, focusing on the far wall. He looks nervous. I make sure the needle and syringe are outside his field of vision. That should help. I pick up a Band-Aid from my box of supplies. It’s a Band-Aid…
Recent evidence on how anti-citrullinated protein antibodies, anti-modified protein autoantibodies and rheumatoid factor activity overlap in RA demonstrate new ideas for diagnostics and pathophysiology.
“It’s like winning Powerball.” For months, there has been a steady trickle of questions from my patients, asking for my opinion about the new vaccines being developed to prevent COVID-19. More to the point, they want to know if they should be vaccinated. After some fits and starts, I finally struck upon a pat answer…
In rural America, where rheumatology offices are fewer and farther between, the expansion of telemedicine has been a boon during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, lab closures and reduced hospital services have made monitoring patients’ medications more challenging.
Some aspects of community practice are normalizing amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, but the financial fallout and the need for increased safety precautions remain challenging.
With his clinic resuming in-person visits, Jay Mehta, MD, says his patients and staff have proved remarkably adaptable, embracing telemedicine during the early days of the pandemic and now facemasks during appointments.
ACR CONVERGENCE 2020—This has been a busy year for research publications covering a number of pediatric rheumatic diseases, including the emerging multi-system inflammatory syndrome (MIS-C) associated with SARS CoV-2. Despite the many challenges brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic, a healthy collection of publications covering a wide range of pediatric rheumatology research topics were published…
COVID-19 isn’t the only viral infection on the rise across the globe, so is chikungunya, which can cause arthritis-like symptoms and may lead to long-term joint pain.