With the chronic pain and other health issues that many rheumatology patients face every day, it’s natural for rheumatologists and their patients to wonder if cannabinoid treatments are of any help. At this point, there is insufficient evidence to recommend cannabinoid treatments to manage rheumatic diseases, according to a review article published in the May…
Many reasons exist to strive for high patient satisfaction, including those related to maintaining certification requirements, risk management, reimbursement and simply having a competitive practice, but the most important one is that by achieving high patient satisfaction, you will find that your patients will be more motivated and more engaged in their individual care, says…
Heraclitus of Ephesus (c. 500 BC) is credited with the saying, “The only constant is change.” Now, centuries later, change is meteoric, and especially in healthcare and health policy, the pace of change is relentless. Rheumatology and other specialties continue to face challenges that threaten the ability to deliver compassionate, competent care to patients. The…
SAN FRANCISCO—“We’ve known for a long time that prescription medications and illicit drugs can both mimic and actually induce the autoimmune syndromes treated by rheumatologists,” Jonathan Graf, MD, professor of medicine at the University of California–San Francisco in the Division of Rheumatology at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital (SFGH), said at the California Rheumatology Alliance…
SAN FRANCISCO—Lung involvement is a frequent and often life-threatening manifestation of the connective tissue diseases (CTDs) that are commonly encountered by rheumatologists. A variety of rheumatic diseases can affect the lungs, including systemic sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, vasculitis, lupus, polymyositis/dermatomyositis (PM/DM) and Sjögren’s syndrome. A panel presentation on lung disease associated with rheumatic diseases at the…
Outside Exam Room No. 5, the chart rack was empty, so I assumed my new consult was late. Just in case, I looked back over my shoulder as I passed by the partially open door and glimpsed the lower half of a woman holding a three-ringed binder on her lap. I squinted and took a…
A 52-year-old woman comes to the office complaining of a two-month history of pain and swelling in the small joints of her hands, feet and knees. She says, “Doctor, I’ve been searching the Internet, and I think I have rheumatoid arthritis. I have some questions for you.” The healthcare system in the U.S. is changing…
CHICAGO—Medicine is in the middle of an infectious-disease “revolution” that seems almost destined to lead to prevention through immunization of many diseases, including rheumatic illnesses, that never were previously thought to involve transmissible agents, an infectious disease specialist said in a session at the ACR’s 2016 State-of-the-Art Clinical Symposium. An array of unlikely and fascinating…
CHICAGO—Researchers have come to know a great deal about IgG4-related disease in a short amount of time, leading to effective treatments with the prospect for more, an expert said at the 2016 State-of-the-Art Clinical Symposium. “One of the most exciting things for me is how quickly we’ve been able to move in understanding this disease,”…
CHICAGO—Diagnosing and treating IgA vasculitis—leukocytoclastic vasculitis involving deposits of IgA1 deposits on the walls of small vessels—is rife with uncertainties, outright unknowns and treatment challenges, an expert on the disease said at the ACR’s 2016 State-of-the-Art Clinical Symposium. Alexandra Villa-Forte, MD, MPH, staff physician at Cleveland Clinic’s Center for Vasculitis Care and Research, said IgA…