CHICAGO (Reuters)—Advisers to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control & Prevention will consider evidence suggesting that a booster dose of COVID-19 vaccines could increase protection among people with compromised immune systems. Data presented ahead of the July 22 meeting noted that people with compromised immune systems have a reduced antibody response following the recommended primary…
CDC Says Fully Vaccinated People Can Gather Unmasked with Others Indoors
NEW YORK (Reuters)—Individuals fully inoculated against COVID-19 can meet in small groups with other vaccinated people without wearing masks, but should keep wearing them outside the home, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said on March 8. CDC Director Rochelle Walensky, MD, MPH, said during a briefing that the agency’s new guidance…
A Public Health Approach to Arthritis
ATLANTA—Rheumatic diseases have been the subject of a range of public health campaigns and reports over the past decade, but improving their visibility remains a work in progress, a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) expert said at the 2019 ACR/ARP Annual Meeting. A growing attention to pain and the opioid crisis may help…
Coding Corner Answers: Rheumatology Word Search
Take the challenge. Ultrasound guidance: There must be a permanent picture placed in the patient’s medical chart to meet the requirements of documentation guidelines. Arthrocentesis: This is the proper term for the withdrawal of fluid and/or injection of medication into a joint. If both the aspiration and injection are performed during the same encounter, only…
Coding Corner Questions: Rheumatology Word Search
Find the words/terms suggested by the following clues: What is the procedure conducted when a permanent picture is required for a joint injection? What is another name for a joint injection? What should be done when a patient returns for an infusion and a prior authorization has already been approved? On what body system is…
U.S. Agency Issues New Guidelines to Limit Chronic Use of Opioids
(Reuters)—Addressing a growing “epidemic” of opioid overdoses and abuse of the prescribed painkillers in the U.S., the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Tuesday released voluntary guidelines that instruct primary care doctors to sharply deter use of the medicines for chronic pain. “Overprescribing opioids, largely for chronic pain, is a key driver of America’s…
Rheuminations: How Tiny Ticks Have Fueled Outrage and Acrimony in Some Communities
A history of rheumatologists’ efforts to diagnose Lyme disease