Ingrid Torjesen

Most women experience a decrease in the severity of their rheumatoid arthritis (RA) symptoms during pregnancy, but some may need ongoing treatment. Test your knowledge of the treatment of RA during pregnancy.

Although associated with adverse effects, glucocorticoids are effective for managing rheumatoid arthritis (RA) symptoms and are prescribed to most patients. Test your knowledge of the prescription of glucocorticoids in RA with this quiz.

Some treatments for rheumatic diseases have shown promise for treating COVID-19, but many should be avoided in patients with confirmed or suspected COVID-19. How much do you know about the use of treatments for rheumatic diseases in patients with COVID-19? Take our quiz to find out.

The American College of Rheumatology (ACR) has recently issued conditional recommendations on the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination for rheumatology patients with musculoskeletal, inflammatory, and autoimmune diseases. The recommendations are focused on the 2 mRNA COVID-19 vaccines currently available in the United States and are based on experience using immunomodulatory medications with other vaccines. The recommendations will be reviewed as additional COVID-19 vaccines are approved for use and more information on vaccine response specific to rheumatic disease patients emerges. Test your knowledge of the special considerations recommended for COVID-19 vaccination of patients with rheumatic diseases.

Patients with rheumatoid arthritis are known to have a greater risk of serious infections related both to the disease itself and its treatment. What can be done to reduce that risk? Test your knowledge with this quiz.

“Based on 16,235 pairs of zoledronic acid and denosumab initiators (for osteoporosis), we found a greater risk (HR 1.25, 95% CI 1.04-1.50) of atrial fibrillation with zoledronic acid vs denosumab: an absolute risk difference of 3.69 events per 1000 person-years,” said Seoyoung Kim, MD, ScD.

Dr Joan Lo, MD, a research scientist with the Kaiser Permanente Northern California Division of Research, said: “We found that hip fracture risk in women did not differ if women stopped bisphosphonate use after five years or stayed on the medication for 10 years. Whether there is a benefit to staying on the drug for seven years needs to be further studied in randomized trials.”

A range of biologic therapies are available as options for treating patients with rheumatoid arthritis who do not respond to first-line conventional DMARDs, but which to choose and why? Test your knowledge of biologics with this quiz.

“The most important take home message for rheumatologists is that we can predict lack of response to methotrexate by analyzing the fecal microbiome of patients before the initiation of the treatment,” said Jose Scher, MD, rheumatologist from the Department of Medicine, Mount Sinai School of Medicine, New York.

The study is the first randomized trial to examine the comparative benefits and safety of biological drugs with different modes of action versus active conventional treatment.

“Bone mineral density screening rates remain low, as do calcium/vitamin D supplementation and primary prophylaxis with anti-osteoporotic therapy," lead author Eileen Rife, MD, said.

The results of a study presented at ACR 2020 demonstrate that a greater proportion of patients were initiated on denosumab compared with bisphosphonates for the first time—18.5% compared with 16.9%— in 2018.

Some of the latest developments in the use of these diagnostic tools for psoriatic arthritis were presented the annual meeting of the American College of Rheumatology Convergence 2020 in November.

“The main take home message is to pay attention to the prevention and treatment of GIOP while prescribing steroids to the patients because the side effects is steroids are not benign," Shikha Singla, MD, said.

Ixekizumab appears to provide significantly greater simultaneous joint and skin improvement for patients with psoriatic arthritis than adalimumab and doesn’t require combination with methotrexate to boost its efficacy.

Findings from a study presented at ACR 2020 showed a clear difference in co-morbidities and medication use associated with osteoporosis at different lumbar levels. Here, a Q&A with the co-author.

Young men with distal radius fracture are likely to have hormonal imbalances suggests the first study to look at sex hormone levels in younger men experiencing fractures.

Non-heterosexual minority men have a greater risk of poor bone health than heterosexual men, and this risk appears to be independent of lifestyle and psychosocial factors, suggests a study published in the American Journal of Human Biology.

Positive ACPA status may not necessarily mean a greater likelihood of osteoporosis and fracture for rheumatoid arthritis patients, study shows.

Continued use of low dose glucocorticoid in patients with rheumatoid arthritis also treated with stable DMARD therapy is associated with a small but significant risk of serious infection, show the results of a study published in Annals of Internal Medicine.

DMARDs improve vascular stiffness in patients with early rheumatoid arthritis regardless of impact on rheumatoid arthritis disease, shows new research published in the Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases.

More than half of patients with psoriatic arthritis have to wait two or more years for a diagnosis, researchers report.

Many patients with psoriatic arthritis live with unacceptable levels of disease activity despite treatment, and patient-reported outcomes could provide useful treatment targets, shows a new study.

In this Q&A, Edgar Wiebe, M.D., of Charité University Medicine Berlin, discusses the findings of a study recently presented at the American College of Rheumatology annual meeting that looked at the impact of a number of factors on bone mineral density.

Several factors can increase the risk of fractures and osteoporosis in patients with systemic sclerosis, including poor functional status and being underweight, according to researchers reporting at the annual meeting of the American College of Rheumatology on Saturday. However, the impact of proton pump inhibitors was less clear.

Non-corticosteroid immunosuppressant use and long duration of disease increase the likelihood of patients with systemic osteopenia being diagnosed with osteopenia and osteoporosis, according to researchers reporting at the annual meeting of the American College of Rheumatology on Friday.

Doctors increased their use of DEXA screening and initiate osteoporosis therapy more frequently after the implementation of an initiative to raise their awareness of the 2017 American College of Rheumatology (ACR) guidelines for the management of glucocorticoid-induced osteoporosis (GIOP), according to researchers reporting at the annual meeting of the American College of Rheumatology on Friday.

Beta blockers may slow the rate of bone loss that occurs as people age, a study published in JBMR Plus suggests.

Use of either oral or inhaled corticosteroids to manage asthma can increase the risk of osteoporosis and fragility fractures, suggest the findings of a large study published in Thorax.

Depression may be linked to an increased risk of rheumatoid arthritis, particularly patients taking antidepressants, shows a new study.