Rheumatology

AAV are a type of small-vessel necrotising vasculitis that manifest as systemic diseases, with pulmonary; ear, nose, and throat; and renal involvement. The key pathological feature of AAV is the presence of ANCA, which can target two neutrophil antigens, myeloperoxidase (MPO) and proteinase 3 (PR3).

Christopher Edwards | Professor and Consultant Rheumatologist and Honorary Chair of Clinical Rheumatology; Musculoskeletal Research Unit…

Karen Walker-Bone |  Professor and Honorary Consultant in Occupational Rheumatology, University of Southampton; Director, Arthritis Research…

Many patients with rheumatic diseases (RMD) are diagnosed during their childbearing years.1 Historically, females with RMDs were advised to avoid pregnancy due to potential risk to both mother and fetus.

Behçet’s syndrome (BS) was first described by Hulusi Behçet in 1931, as a definite clinical entity, the ‘triple symptom complex’, based on three prominent signs: relapsing oral apthae, genital ulcerations, and iritis.

Axial spondyloarthritis (axSpA) is a chronic inflammatory condition that predominantly affects the sacroiliac joints and spine. It is a…

A treat-to-target (T2T) strategy is a treatment plan in which the clinician treats the patient aggressively enough to reach and maintain explicitly specified and sequentially measured goals, such as remission, low disease activity, or absence of disability.

To examine clinical application of QSS, the authors developed a search strategy of QSS using a literature review through database of MEDLINE, Embase (Ovid), CINAHL (EBSCOhost), HaPI (Ovid), Cochrane Review (Ovid), and citation mining.

The spondyloarthropathies (SpA) are a spectrum of inter-related conditions that include axial spondyloarthritis (AxSpA), (also known as ankylosing spondylitis; AS), non-radiographic axial spondyloarthritis, peripheral spondyloathritis (pSpA), reactive arthritis (ReA), and enteropathic arthritis associated with Crohn’s disease (CD).

The main purpose of this study was to evaluate the prevalence, form, and severity of scoliosis in a population of adults meeting the 2017 criteria for hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (hEDS).

Brucellosis is a zoonotic infection, historically known as Maltese fever, caused by aerobic Gram-negative coccobacilli, which was first identified by Sir…

It is important to recognise inflammatory back pain (IBP) for early diagnosis of ankylosing spondylitis (AS). The aims of this study were to develop….

Psoriatic arthritis (PsA) is an inflammatory condition of the joints and the areas where tendons and ligaments connect with bone…

This article explores applying the principle of prehabilitation to patients with rheumatoid arthritis prior to starting advanced therapies, including…

To evaluate changes in microbial composition and the evolution of gastrointestinal tract (GIT) symptoms in systemic sclerosis (SSc).

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a systemic autoimmune condition prevalent in North America and Northern European populations with an incidence of 1%…

Autoimmune hepatitis is a condition closely related to autoimmune diseases. Previously, it was known to have three distinct types, which were recently…

Niccolo Machiavelli and Winston Churchill have both been credited with the advice: “Never waste the opportunity offered by a good crisis.” It would be…

Dr Proft opened the symposium with the case of a 33-year-old female patient referred via the online self-referral tool ‘Bechterew Check’…

This Janssen-sponsored live symposium “Advancing the Treatment of PsA: Focus on the IL-23 Pathway,” took place virtually at the European League Against…

Prof Schett opened the session by explaining the overall theme and objectives of the symposium. Charles Darwin famously visited the Galápagos islands…

Psoriatic arthritis (PsA) is a chronic, heterogeneous, immune-mediated arthritis characterised by joint inflammation and diverse clinical manifestations…

Clinical Prof Daniel Wallace   |  Rheumatologist, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center and Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center, Los Angeles,  California, USA…

Spondyloarthritis (SpA) is a chronic systemic rheumatic disease, the hallmark manifestation of which is inflammatory back pain, and may also involve…

Methotrexate (MTX) is the most commonly used medication to treat RA. MTX pneumonitis (MTX-pneu) is a rare disease entity reported in MTX users.

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is associated with changes in skeletal health, including increased risk of fracture.

The purpose of this review is to provide a clinically focussed description of the relevant aetiopathogenesis, clinical expression of disease, approach to the assessment and treatment of Systemic Sclerosis, and highlight the recent advances and future challenges associated with this complex disease.

To correlate audiometry with atherosclerosis. Presbycusis is associated  with age and atherosclerosis; a strong correlation might present opportunities to…

Axial spondyloarthritis (axSpA) is a chronic inflammatory disease which predominantly involves the axial skeleton and sacroiliac joints.

In March 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic arrived in Cyprus. Suddenly, our lives and our way of life has been affected in an unprecedented way…

Currently, rheumatologists cannot reliably predict the progression of early undifferentiated arthritis to early RA…

Chronic inflammatory diseases (CID) encompass a wide range of pathologies affecting different organs or bodily functions…

Dr Queiro-Silva opened the session by proposing a definition of the moderate-severity PsA patient: patients associated with a limited number of affected…

Systemic sclerosis (SSc) is a multi-system connective tissue disease characterised by excessive fibrosis, microvasculopathy, and autoimmunity…

The use of ultrasonography has been increasing across many specialties, including rheumatology…

Polymyalgia rheumatica (PMR) and seronegative elderly-onset rheumatoid arthritis (SEORA) are two of the most frequent inflammatory rheumatologic diseases in elderly patients.

Anti-TNF biologics have revolutionised treatment of RA. More recently, the emergence of high-quality biosimilars has provided a cost-effective means of…

Although gender is defined by psychological and social differences between men and women, and sex is defined by biological parameters based on genetics…

Since the 1990s, outcomes for patients with RA have steadily improved over time, with the treatment target for patients evolving from symptomatic relief…

The aim of this symposium was to familiarise participants with the IL-23 pathway and the rationale for targeting this pathway in PsA…

The field of immunometabolism is a rapidly expanding area of research that centres around understanding the interrelationship between immunological and…

Osteoporosis is a systemic skeletal disease characterised by microarchitectural deterioration and high fragility of bone tissue, resulting in low bone…

Although aPL are reported in 1–5% of the general population,2 only a minority of these individuals will develop the clinical manifestations of APS. The incidence of APS…

Psoriatic arthritis (PsA) belongs to the group of diseases known as spondyloarthritis (SpA). The impact of PsA is not limited to just skin and joints…

Adalimumab is a recombinant fully human monoclonal antibody (IgG1 type) targeting soluble and transmembrane TNF. AbbVie’s bio-originator adalimumab…

Apremilast (APR) is a small molecule phosphodiesterase-4 inhibitor that is used in the treatment of psoriasis (PsO) and psoriatic arthritis (PsA)…

Fibromyalgia is a common chronic pain disorder characterised by a robust clinical phenotype with principal features that include widespread pain and…

Osteoarthritis (OA) is the most prevalent form of arthritis worldwide and affects the whole joint. Changes in cartilage integrity, subchondral bone, and…

The most common autoimmune diseases that affect the joints are osteoarthritis (OA) and rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The pathogeneses of both OA and RA are…

Switching patients from a reference to a biosimilar product has become a primary topic of interest, with different approaches being undertaken by the…

This article presents a case of infection after ACL reconstruction and discusses risk factors, treatment choice, antibiotic treatment length, and functional outcomes, proposing a guide for the treatment.

The aim of this review is to illustrate the role of NAD+-related enzymes in the pathogenesis of RA and highlight the potential therapeutic role of NAD+ in RA.

With an increasing number of biosimilars receiving regulatory approval, the treatment landscape for rheumatic diseases is evolving. Healthcare…

Biological disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs have defined a new era in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) management but share the limitation of antagonising…

Biosimilars are more affordable versions of previously approved biopharmaceuticals that are designed to reduce healthcare expenditure and increase…

Primary Sjögren’s syndrome (pSS) is a relatively common disease and one of the most common rheumatic diseases

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is an autoimmune disease characterised by a breakdown in immune tolerance

Autoimmune responses need to be identified and managed promptly to avoid deleterious consequences. Autoimmune diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis (RA)…

This review analyses the factors responsible for higher ischaemic and haemorrhagic stroke risk in the systemic lupus erythematosus population

Objectives: To examine the combined effectiveness of a care pathway for patients with suspected inflammatory back pain (IBP) in conjunction with an…

Prof Taylor opened the meeting and briefly highlighted the epidemiology of pregnancy in women with chronic rheumatic diseases. Dr Moltó presented the…

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic, disabling, inflammatory, autoimmune disease that affects approximatively 0.4–1.0% of the population. Immune…

Osteoarthritis (OA) is the most common global chronic joint disease. A study into the impact of Osteoarthritis and its impact on ageing

The objective of the symposium was to explain the mechanism behind IL-6 dysfunction in RA pathophysiology, review novel RA therapies…

Prof McGonagle introduced the symposium and briefly described the aims of the meeting.

This commentary reflects our personal approach to the treatment of idiopathic inflammatory myopathies (IIM), also commonly referred to as myositis.

Ankylosing spondylitis is a chronic autoimmune inflammatory condition belonging to the spondyloarthropathy category of rheumatic diseases…

Prof Fernando Perez-Ruiz opened the symposium, which focussed on the current unmet need in controlling gout and associated comorbidities with current…

To mark this year’s World Osteoporosis Day (WOD) on the 20th October 2017, the European Medical Journal spoke to the International Osteoporosis…

Spasmodic dysphonia (SD): what about it? That is the million-dollar question.

The licensing of biosimilars heralds the start of a new era for physicians treating immune and inflammatory diseases.

Biosimilars have been available in Europe since 2006, and biosimilars of monoclonal antibodies since 2013, and are now a widespread clinical reality.

The symposium at the EULAR 2017 congress aimed to provide insights into the burden of psoriatic arthritis on patients’ daily lives, including the…

Uveitis is an inflammatory disease with significant disease burden, as it causes ≤10% of legal blindness in the USA.

In this review, the role of the organic osmolytes taurine, betaine, myo-inositol, and sorbitol in skeletal muscles in general, and in myositis in…

Systemic lupus erythematosus is a chronic, multi-organ disease that predominantly affects young women of childbearing age.

Rheumatoid arthritis, the most frequent chronic inflammatory autoimmune disease, can lead to pain, bone and articular destruction, and limb…

Vitamin D acts as a steroid hormone possessing important functions in calcium and phosphorus balance and bone health.

As any rheumatologist knows, most non-medical individuals don’t really know what ‘rheumatology’ is. Not so much of a bad reputation, as no reputation.

Osteoarthritis (OA) is the most common form of arthritis, yet has historically lagged far behind rheumatoid arthritis in terms of drug development.

Antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) is a systemic autoimmune disease characterised by recurrent thromboembolic events (arterial or venous) and/or morbidity…

Primary Sjögren’s syndrome (pSS) is a systemic autoimmune epithelitis and recent advances in our comprehension of its pathophysiology strongly suggest a…

Introduction: Whiplash or indirect injuries to the neck are a common occurrence because of motor vehicle collisions, in which the frequency of ocular…

Targeted biological therapies have revolutionised the treatment of inflammatory diseases in rheumatology and new agents continue to be developed. The…

The evaluation of patients with fibromyalgia (FM) and other functional somatic syndromes can appear intimidating, but a high index of suspicion and a…

On January 14th 2016, SB4 (Benepali®) received marketing authorisation application approval from the European Commission (EC). It is the first biosimilar…

The term spondyloarthritis (SpA) is used to describe a heterogeneous group of diseases sharing certain characteristics.

Three biosimilar products are now licensed for the treatment of rheumatic diseases in Europe. The European Medicines Agency (EMA) requires that similarity between a biosimilar and its reference product is demonstrated using a rigorous, stepwise process that includes extensive physicochemical and biological analytical testing, non-clinical pharmacology, clinical evaluations, and pharmacovigilance plans. Each

Prof Peter Taylor opened the symposium focussed on optimisation of treatment for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) at each stage of the patient’s journey. Prof…

Targeted biologics have revolutionised the treatment and outlook of patients with inflammatory joint diseases. The combination of high-cost long-term…

This educational symposium was opened by Prof Ernest Choy, who introduced the concept of precision medicine and highlighted the importance of integrating…

Prof Josef Smolen opened the symposium and briefly described the aims of the meeting. Co-host Prof Constantino Pitzalis first discussed the…

Sjögren’s syndrome (SjS) is a chronic, progressive, systemic, human autoimmune disease in which an auto-inflammatory process within the salivary and…

The aim of the present review is to summarise the results from recent clinical studies on the basis of the newly proposed temporal classification of…

People with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) are often under-recognised as a group with elevated risk of cardiovascular (CV) disease and increased morbidity…

Psoriatic arthritis is an inflammatory arthritis which affects the skin and musculoskeletal system. If not diagnosed early and treated effectively it can…

The current goals in the development of novel therapeutics of systemic autoimmune diseases are to develop agents more effective than conventional…

Idiopathic inflammatory myopathies (IIM) are traditionally identified as a group of disorders that target skeletal muscle due to autoimmune dysfunction…

Diabetes is a non-communicable disease (NCD) meaning that it often cannot be seen. After 20 years of living with Type 1 diabetes I am lucky to have no…

Prof Gerd Horneff opened the symposium with a summary of the recent advances in the understanding of the role of interleukin (IL)-1β in the pathogenesis…

nterleukin (IL)-1 is a messenger for the regulation of inflammatory responses, but it can be harmful when in excess, such as in the inflammation observed…

The meeting was opened by Prof Atul Deodhar who introduced the prevalence, epidemiology, and clinical features of axial spondyloarthritis (axSpA), and…

Prof Philip Mease introduced psoriatic arthritis (PsA) with a particular emphasis on disease symptoms and an update on the status of current disease…

Chronic arthritis often affects women of childbearing age. The old concept that having chronic arthritis constitutes a major obstacle to women when…

Osteoarthritis (OA) is the most common form of arthritis worldwide. It results in chronic pain, functional limitations, and significant social and…

Patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) have an increased risk of developing malignant lymphomas, especially non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (NHL).

Soft connective tissue calcification is still an intriguing problem due to the high number of genes, proteins, and enzymes involved in the process.

Axial spondyloarthritis (AxSpA) is the prototype of a family of inter-related yet heterogeneous diseases sharing common clinical and genetic…

This past week I have had the honour and pleasure of introducing my book Women and Cardiovascular Disease in London. During the book-signing event, I was…

The symposium, co-chaired by Prof Johanne Martel-Pelletier and Prof Antonello Pietrangelo, opened with a discussion of metabolic syndrome-associated…

Systemic sclerosis (SSc) is an autoimmune disease in which vascular damage and immune activation leads to excessive accumulation of extracellular matrix…

Idiopathic scoliosis (IS) is a lifetime condition and is defined as a structural, lateral rotated curvature of the spine of >10° on standing coronal…

Osteoporosis is one of the leading causes of handicap worldwide and a major contributor to the global burden of diseases. In particular, osteoporosis is…

Musculoskeletal ultrasound (US) is increasingly used as a bedside tool for diagnostic and monitoring purposes in patients with psoriatic arthritis (PsA).

Juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) is a multifactorial disease with a pathogenesis which remains inexplicable. However, genome-wide association studies…

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a chronic disorder associated mainly with pain, limited range of motion, stiffness, joint inflammation, and articular cartilage…

Osteoarthritis (OA) is the most common form of arthritis and results in significant social, psychological, and economic costs. It is characterised by…

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic systemic inflammatory disease, characterised by polyarthritis and extra-articular organ disease, including…

Antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) is an autoimmune disease characterised by arterial and/or venous thrombosis, recurrent pregnancy loss, and persistently…