Rheumatology

Article Pediatrics

Bridging gaps: a qualitative inquiry on improving paediatric rheumatology care among healthcare workers in Kenya

Angela Migowa, Sasha Bernatsky, Anthony K. Ngugi, Helen E. Foster, Peterrock Muriuki, Roselyter M. Riang'a, Stanley Luchters

Summary: The purpose of this study is to identify proposed interventions that can improve the ability of non-specialist healthcare workers to care for pediatric rheumatology patients across Kenya.

PEDIATRIC RHEUMATOLOGY (2023)

Article Rheumatology

Osteoporosis and osteoarthritis: a bi-directional Mendelian randomization study

Yudun Qu, Shibo Chen, Mengling Han, Ziqi Gu, Yujie Zhang, Tianxiang Fan, Muhui Zeng, Guangfeng Ruan, Peihua Cao, Qian Yang, Changhai Ding, Yan Zhang, Zhaohua Zhu

Summary: Using Mendelian randomization (MR) design, this study investigated the causal relationship between low bone mineral density (BMD) and osteoarthritis (OA). The findings suggest that low BMD may increase the risk of OA, and measures to raise BMD could be effective in preventing OA.

ARTHRITIS RESEARCH & THERAPY (2023)

Article Rheumatology

Effectiveness of functional training versus resistance exercise in patients with psoriatic arthritis: randomized controlled trial

Diego Roger Silva, Sandra Mara Meireles, Christine Brumini, Jamil Natour

Summary: The study demonstrates that both functional training and resistance exercise are equally effective in improving functional capacity, functional status, disease activity, general quality of life, and muscle strength in patients with psoriatic arthritis.

ADVANCES IN RHEUMATOLOGY (2023)

Article Orthopedics

Magnitude of flat foot and its associated factors among school-aged children in Southern Ethiopia: an institution-based cross-sectional study

Asaminew Birhanu, Khaleel Nagarchi, Firdawek Getahun, Mathewos Alemu Gebremichael, Habtamu Wondmagegn

Summary: This study found that one in every ten children has flat foot. Altitude, residence, sex, physical activity, foot pain, body mass index, and type of footwear are associated factors with flat foot.

BMC MUSCULOSKELETAL DISORDERS (2023)

Review Rheumatology

Psychological interventions to improve pain, fatigue, anxiety, depression, and quality of life in children and adults with hypermobility spectrum disorders and Ehlers-Danlos syndrome: a systematic review

Natalie L. Clark, Gurvinder Singh Kainth, Melissa Johnson, Amar Rangan, Lucksy Kottam, Katherine Swainston

Summary: This systematic review examines the use of psychological interventions in individuals with Hypermobility Spectrum Disorders (HSD) and finds that these interventions can improve the lived experiences of patients, particularly in reducing pain. However, further research is needed to confirm these findings.

RHEUMATOLOGY INTERNATIONAL (2023)

Article Rheumatology

COVID-19 Vaccine Uptake, Hesitancy, and Flare in a Large Rheumatology Practice Network

Emily E. Holladay, Amy S. Mudano, Fenglong Xie, Patrick Stewart, Lesley E. Jackson, Maria I. Danila, Kelly Gavigan, William B. Nowell, Shilpa Venkatachalam, Jeffrey R. Curtis

Summary: This study investigated the uptake of COVID-19 vaccines, reasons for vaccine hesitancy, and self-reported flare in a rheumatology practice-based network. The results showed that patients with autoimmune and inflammatory rheumatic diseases (AIIRDs) were more hesitant to receive vaccines and boosters compared to patients without AIIRDs. Safety concerns and side effects were the main reasons for vaccine hesitancy, while a lack of recommendation from physicians was the primary factor for booster hesitancy.

ARTHRITIS CARE & RESEARCH (2023)

Article Orthopedics

Short-term clinical results of bicruciate-retaining total knee arthroplasty using personalized alignment

Hiroshi Inui, Ryota Yamagami, Kenichi Kono, Kohei Kawaguchi, Tomofumi Kage, Ryo Murakami, Haruhiko Nakamura, Kazuo Saita, Shuji Taketomi, Sakae Tanaka

Summary: The study reveals that the limb alignment and joint component gaps of FA-BCR TKA are comparable to normal range, and the short-term clinical outcomes of FA-BCR TKA are comparable or slightly superior to those of UKA.

BMC MUSCULOSKELETAL DISORDERS (2023)

Article Rheumatology

Pattern of disease expression in SLE patients with antiphospholipid antibodies: data from Indian Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Inception cohort (INSPIRE)

Vineeta Shobha, Liza Rajasekhar, Sandra Manuel, V. Nayana, Chengappa Kavadichanda, Deepika Kounassegarane, Ashish J. Mathew, Ranjan Gupta, Manish Rathi, Parasar Ghosh, Saumya Ranjan Tripathy, Bidyut Das, Sumithra Selvam, Abhishek Kumar Singh, Ankita Singh, Avinash Jain, Amita Aggarwal

Summary: This study aimed to investigate the prevalence, clinical associations, and impact on mortality of antiphospholipid antibodies (APLA) in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) patients from India. The study found that about one-third of SLE patients in India have APLA, and its presence is associated with non-criteria hematologic manifestations, arterial thrombosis, and higher mortality rate.

RHEUMATOLOGY INTERNATIONAL (2023)

Article Rheumatology

Impaired serotonin synthesis in hippocampus of murine lupus represents an early neuropsychiatric event

Dionysis Nikolopoulos, Modestos Nakos-Bimpos, Theodora Manolakou, Alexia Polissidis, Dimitrios T. Boumpas

Summary: The study found that impaired hippocampal serotonin synthesis is an early neuropsychiatric event in systemic lupus erythematosus (NPSLE). These findings may have important implications for the use of symptomatic therapy in diffuse NPSLE.
Article Rheumatology

Spectrum of initial clinical presentations in Pakistani patients with systemic lupus erythematosus in the Arthritis Care Foundation lupus cohort

Madeeha Siddique, Nighat Mir Ahmed, Sumaira Farman Raja, Muhammad Ahmed Saeed, Sadaf Sarwar

Summary: This study aimed to determine the pattern of initial clinical presentations of systemic lupus erythematous (SLE) in a Pakistani lupus cohort. The results showed that mucocutaneous manifestations were the most commonly reported symptoms, indicating the importance of considering autoimmune diseases in patients with these symptoms.
Article Rheumatology

The risk factors for uveitis among psoriatic arthritis patients: a population-based cohort study

Nizar Hijazi, Tal Gazitt, Amir Haddad, Muna Elias, Sameer Kassem, Ilan Feldhamer, Arnon Dov Cohen, Shaul Sar, Oren Tomkins-Netzer, Walid Saliba, Devy Zisman

Summary: The frequency of uveitis is higher in patients with psoriatic arthritis (PsA) during the era of biologics. Past uveitis and treatment with etanercept are risk factors associated with uveitis in PsA patients.

CLINICAL RHEUMATOLOGY (2023)

Article Rheumatology

Does the Impact of COVID-19 on Patients With Systemic Sclerosis Change Over Time?

Elisabeth Deibel, Patricia E. Carreira, Madelon Vonk, Nicoletta del Papa, Radim Becvar, Alfredo Guillen-Del-Castillo, Corrado Campochiaro, Hadi Poormoghim, Sophie Liem, Maria-Grazia Lazzaroni, Alessandro Giollo, Arsene Mekinian, Jeska de Vries-Bouwstra, Maria De Santis, Alexandra Balbir-Gurman, Carina Mihai, Giacomo De Luca, Sergey Moiseev, Elisabetta Zanatta, Rosario Foti, Simona Rednic, Christopher Denton, Maurizio Cutolo, Laura Belloli, Paolo Airo, Liudmila Garzanova, Gianluca Moroncini, Murat Inanc, Stylianos Panopoulos, Jose-Luis Tandaipan, Emmanuel Chatelus, Edoardo Rosato, Masataka Kuwana, Sule Yavuz, Juan J. Alegre-Sancho, Vanessa Smith, Gabriella Szucs, Joerg Henes, Ignasi Rodriguez-Pinto, Fabiola Atzeni, Julia Spierings, Marie-Elise Truchetet, Marcin Milchert, Daniel Brito de Araujo, Gabriela Riemekasten, Vera Bernardino, Thierry Martin, Francesco del Galdo, Alessandra Vacca, Fabian Mendoza, Oyvind Midtvedt, Giuseppe Murdaca, Tania Santiago, Veronica Codullo, Fabio Cacciapaglia, Ulrich Walker, Cathrine Brunborg, Francesca Tirelli, Yannick Allanore, Daniel E. Furst, Marco Matucci, Armando Gabrielli, Oliver Distler, Anna-Maria Hoffmann-Vold

Summary: The outcome of patients with both SSc and COVID-19 significantly improved over time due to intrinsic and extrinsic factors. Patients in waves 2 and 3 had a significantly lower rate of severe COVID-19, hospitalization, ventilatory support, and death compared to wave 1. These patients were younger, more likely to be male, and had lower rates of arterial hypertension and SSc cardiac involvement.

ARTHRITIS CARE & RESEARCH (2023)

Review Rheumatology

Safety and efficacy of biologics in childhood systemic lupus erythematosus: a critical systematic review

Rawan Elshaer, Samar Jaber, Nour Odeh, Lana Arbili, Sulaiman M. Al-Mayouf

Summary: This study summarizes the available evidence on the use of biologic agents in childhood-onset systemic lupus erythematosus (cSLE). Belimumab and rituximab are potential treatment options for refractory and severe cases of cSLE. However, further research is needed to fully understand their efficacy and potential risks.

CLINICAL RHEUMATOLOGY (2023)

Article Rheumatology

Efficacy of Telitacicept in a systemic lupus erythematosus patient with suboptimal response to Belimumab: A case report

Li Huang, Gangzhen Qian, Huhai Zhang, Qixuan Li, Liping Chen, Xiaopeng Tang, Hongwen Zhao

Summary: This case report describes the significant improvement in a patient with lupus nephritis who switched to Telitacicept after being ineffective treated with Belimumab, which is the first report on the efficacy of Telitacicept for suboptimal response to Belimumab in a SLE patient.
Article Rheumatology

Phosphorylated vimentin at Ser72 is associated with epithelial-mesenchymal transition in lupus nephritis

Daji Wang, Fan Zhang, Jing He, Chuyi Li, Xingjiao Liu, Meng Zhang, Haihui Huang, Zuying Xiong, Hongxia Duan, Xiaoyan Huang, Meiying Wang

Summary: This study measured the expression of vimentin and its phosphorylated forms in lupus nephritis (LN) and found that vimentin phosphorylated on Ser72 is important for renal epithelial cell migration, which could enhance the progression of vimentin-induced epithelial-mesenchymal transition during LN development.

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF RHEUMATIC DISEASES (2023)

Article Rheumatology

Galectin-3 and its correlation with carotid ultrasound in rheumatoid arthritis patients

Arwa S. Amer, Amal Fathy Soliman, Mohamed Mohamed Hosny Fahem, A. L-Shaimaa Mahmoud AL-Tabbakh, Samah Abdelbaset Hussein

Summary: Background: Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic inflammatory disease associated with cardiovascular disease (CVD) development. Galectin-3 (Gal-3) is a potential biomarker for RA, and it has been found to be related to the activity, severity, chronicity of RA, and predictive of cardiovascular comorbidity.

EGYPTIAN RHEUMATOLOGY AND REHABILITATION (2023)

Article Rheumatology

KL-6 in adult polymyositis and dermatomyositis patients and its correlation with interstitial lung disease

Mayada Khalil, Ali Ibrahim Fouda, Nashwa Ahmed Amin, Ahmed Saied Mohammed Ali, Ghada Mohammed Shams, Soheir Hussein Sheiha

Summary: This study found that patients with Polymyositis/Dermatomyositis (PM/DM) with interstitial lung disease (ILD) had higher serum concentrations of KL-6 compared to PM/DM patients without ILD. KL-6 levels were significantly correlated with HRCT score and pulmonary function test results. KL-6 may serve as a potential marker for diagnosis and follow-up of PM/DM with ILD.

EGYPTIAN RHEUMATOLOGY AND REHABILITATION (2023)

Article Rheumatology

Decline in Incidence of Extra-Articular Manifestations of Rheumatoid Arthritis: A Population-Based Cohort Study

Bradly A. Kimbrough, Cynthia S. Crowson, John M. Davis III, Eric L. Matteson, Elena Myasoedova

Summary: The study found that the cumulative incidence of extra-articular manifestations of rheumatoid arthritis (ExRAs) has decreased over time. The study also found that mortality risk is increased in patients with ExRAs. Risk factors include rheumatoid factor positivity and current smoking.

ARTHRITIS CARE & RESEARCH (2023)