Rheumatology News and Research

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Rheumatology is a sub-specialty in internal medicine and pediatrics, devoted to the diagnosis and therapy of rheumatic diseases. Rheumatologists mainly deal with clinical problems involving joints, soft tissues and allied conditions of connective tissues.

Scientists discover new mechanism by which sleep supports the immune system

Getting enough sleep is vital to supporting our immune system in fighting off pathogens - so much is common knowledge. But what we don't know is how exactly sleep affects certain immune functions.

12 Feb 2019

Study explores whether most patients with fibromyalgia are misdiagnosed

Recent studies have suggested that most people who have been diagnosed with fibromyalgia by physicians may not actually have the condition.

6 Feb 2019

Research could provide a new way to treat organ scarring in future

The increased deposition of connective tissue is a problem in chronic diseases of many organs such as the lungs, liver, kidneys, gut, and the skin.

6 Feb 2019

Groundbreaking preventive approach promises to revolutionize treatment of rheumatoid arthritis

The EU- and industry-funded RTCURE project’s groundbreaking approach promises to revolutionise treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, which afflicts millions of people across Europe with joint pain, inflammation and bone and cartilage loss.

4 Feb 2019

Research may provide a new way to treat organ scarring

Scientists from Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU), Department of Medicine 3 - Rheumatology and Immunology, headed by Prof. Dr. Georg Schett, have now decrypted a molecular network that controls these processes and could in future provide a new way to treat organ scarring.

1 Feb 2019

Researcher discovers blood vessel system in bones

A network of very fine blood vessels that connects bone marrow directly with the blood supply of the periosteum that was previously overlooked has now been discovered by Dr. Anika Grüneboom, a young researcher who is now working at Universitätsklinikum Erlangen.

30 Jan 2019

Innovate UK awards major grant to develop Rheumatoid Arthritis Flare Profiler

A partnership between the healthtech company Living With, the Royal United Hospitals Bath NHS Foundation Trust, and the University of Bath has been awarded a major grant to develop a Rheumatoid Arthritis Flare Profiler.

30 Jan 2019

New research reveals that prescription opioids are used long-term to treat severe osteoarthritis

New research published in Arthritis & Rheumatology, an official journal of the American College of Rheumatology, reveals that prescription opioids are commonly used long-term to treat pain in older patients with severe osteoarthritis.

28 Jan 2019

ACR expresses its continuing concern with recent CMS policy

In comments submitted to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the American College of Rheumatology expressed its continuing concern with a recent CMS policy allowing Medicare Advantage plans to utilize step therapy for Part B drugs.

25 Jan 2019

Nerve transfer surgery restores arm movement in children with acute flaccid myelitis

An innovative and complex surgery involving nerve transfers is restoring hope and transforming lives torn apart by a mysterious and devastating illness. Acute flaccid myelitis, also known as AFM, strikes without warning, shows no mercy and frequently results in paralysis.

15 Jan 2019

Research examines patterns in back pain over time

Back pain is among the most frequently reported health problems in the world. New research published in Arthritis Care & Research, an official journal of the American College of Rheumatology and the Association of Rheumatology Health Professionals, examines patterns in back pain over time and identifies the patient characteristics and the extent of healthcare and medication use (including opioids) associated with different patterns.

10 Jan 2019

Mechanism underlying impaired allergic inflammation in children may explain hygiene hypothesis

The hygiene hypothesis may explain why asthma and other allergic airway diseases have dramatically increased over the past decades in industrialized countries.

9 Jan 2019

Heberden's nodes may be associated with knee osteoarthritis

Heberden's nodes are bony enlargements of the finger joints that are readily detectable in a routine physical exam and are considered hallmarks of osteoarthritis. A new Arthritis & Rheumatology study found that the presence of HNs may also indicate structural damage associated with knee osteoarthritis.

9 Jan 2019

Researchers develop mouse model to study consequences of fungal infection in the brain

Fungal infections are emerging as a major medical challenge, and a team led by researchers at Baylor College of Medicine has developed a mouse model to study the short-term consequences of fungal infection in the brain.

4 Jan 2019

Chronic rhinitis associated with hospital readmissions for asthma and COPD patients

Patients hospitalized for either asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease have a higher risk of being readmitted for a hospital stay within 30 days of release if they also suffer from chronic rhinitis, according to a trio of researchers at the University of Cincinnati.

13 Dec 2018

New review focuses on electrospinning techniques used in musculoskeletal tissue engineering

The rotator cuff is a group of four muscles and tendons that stabilizes the shoulder joint. It also helps in the motion of the shoulder. Rotator cuff tear is the most common condition involving ailing shoulders. It happens due to normal muscle tissue wear and tear by repeating the same motion again and again, without resting the muscles.

11 Dec 2018

Researchers identify new type of T cell that could play role in cancer, other diseases

Researchers from the UCLA Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center and the La Jolla Institute for Immunology have identified a new type of T cell called a phospholipid-reactive T cell that is able to recognize phospholipids, the molecules that help form cells' outer membranes.

6 Dec 2018

UAB research may point a path to more effective influenza vaccines

Seasonal influenza vaccines are typically less than 50 percent effective, according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention studies. Research at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, published this week in Nature Immunology, may point a path to more effective vaccines.

6 Dec 2018

Proton pump inhibitors in combination with oral anticoagulants reduce GI bleeding risk

A Vanderbilt University Medical Centerstudy published today in JAMA shows that patients already at higher risk for gastrointestinal bleeding gain a marked protection from this risk when they take a proton pump inhibitor in combination with an oral anticoagulant.

4 Dec 2018

ACR and NPF release joint treatment guideline for psoriatic arthritis

The American College of Rheumatology and National Psoriasis Foundation have released a joint treatment guideline for psoriatic arthritis that provides evidence-based pharmacologic and non-pharmacologic recommendations on caring for treatment-naïve patients with active PsA and patients who continue to have active PsA despite treatment.