MedicineWorld.Org brings daily rheumatology news from various sources to keep you updated on the latest events in the world on this topic. Medicineworld rheumatology news service is the most comprehensive rheumatology news service on the internet. We keep an archive of previous few days of news on this site. Please go down through the list to find the older news items. Mon, 01 Feb 2010 14:16:04 GMT en-us http://medicineworld.org/images/Rheumatology-news.jpg 90 90 http://medicineworld.org/stories/lead/2-2010/tailoring-treatment-for-rheumatoid-arthritis.html http://medicineworld.org/stories/lead/2-2010/tailoring-treatment-for-rheumatoid-arthritis.html Mon, 01 Feb 2010 14:16:04 GMT Investigators have identified a biomarker that could help doctors select patients with rheumatoid arthritis who will benefit from treatment with drugs such as Enbrel, a tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-antagonist drug. The study, led by scientists at Hospital for Special Surgery in collaboration with rheumatologists at University of Southern California, appears in the recent issue of the journal Arthritis and Rheumatism........ ]]> http://medicineworld.org/stories/lead/2-2010/most-patients-gain-weight-after-getting-a-new-knee.html http://medicineworld.org/stories/lead/2-2010/most-patients-gain-weight-after-getting-a-new-knee.html Mon, 01 Feb 2010 14:16:04 GMT You'd think folks who've had knee replacement surgery -- finally able to walk and exercise without pain -- would lose weight instead of put on pounds, but surprisingly that's not the case, as per a University of Delaware study. Scientists Joseph Zeni and Lynn Snyder-Mackler in the Department of Physical Therapy in UD's College of Health Sciences observed that patients typically drop weight in the first few weeks after total knee arthroplasty (TKA), but then the number on the scale starts creeping upward, with an average weight gain of 14 pounds in two years........ ]]> http://medicineworld.org/stories/lead/1-2010/suffering-from-rheumatoid-arthritis.html http://medicineworld.org/stories/lead/1-2010/suffering-from-rheumatoid-arthritis.html Mon, 01 Feb 2010 14:16:04 GMT A recent study by scientists from the University of Pittsburgh observed that workers with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) were comparable to non-impaired individuals in keyboarding speed. Individuals who were trained in touch typing demonstrated faster typing speeds than those using a visually-guided ("hunt and peck") method, regardless of impairment. Scientists also noted slightly impaired mouse skills in workers with RA. Results of this study appear in the recent issue of Arthritis Care and Research, a journal published by Wiley-Blackwell on behalf of the American College of Rheumatology........ ]]> http://medicineworld.org/stories/lead/1-2010/cartilage-repair-can-improve-life.html http://medicineworld.org/stories/lead/1-2010/cartilage-repair-can-improve-life.html Mon, 01 Feb 2010 14:16:04 GMT Osteoarthritis (OA) is one of the ten most disabling diseases in the developed world and is set to become more of a financial burden on health services as average life expectancy increases. OA is the most common form of arthritis, affecting nearly 27 million Americans or 12.1% of the adult population of the United States, as per Laurence et al. A 2001 study showed that the disease costs US health services about $89.1 billion,2 and indirect costs relating to wages and productivity losses and unplanned home care averaged $4603 per person.3........ ]]> http://medicineworld.org/stories/lead/1-2010/genetic-research-related-to-ankylosing-spondylitis.html http://medicineworld.org/stories/lead/1-2010/genetic-research-related-to-ankylosing-spondylitis.html Mon, 01 Feb 2010 14:16:04 GMT Work done in part by scientists at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston has led to the discovery of two new genes that are implicated in ankylosing spondylitis (AS), an inflammatory and potentially disabling disease. In addition, the international research team pinpointed two areas along stretches of DNA that play an important role in regulating gene activity linked to the arthritic condition........ ]]> http://medicineworld.org/stories/lead/10-2009/tai-chi-reduces-osteoarthritis-pain.html http://medicineworld.org/stories/lead/10-2009/tai-chi-reduces-osteoarthritis-pain.html Mon, 01 Feb 2010 14:16:04 GMT Scientists from Tufts University School of Medicine have determined that patients over 65 years of age with knee osteoarthritis (OA) who engage in regular Tai Chi exercise improve physical function and experience less pain. Tai Chi (Chuan) is a traditional style of Chinese martial arts that features slow, rhythmic movements to induce mental relaxation and enhance balance, strength, flexibility, and self-efficacy. Full findings of the study are reported in the recent issue of Arthritis Care and Research, a journal of the American College of Rheumatology........ ]]> http://medicineworld.org/stories/lead/10-2009/gleevec-may-be-helpful-in-sclerodema.html http://medicineworld.org/stories/lead/10-2009/gleevec-may-be-helpful-in-sclerodema.html Mon, 01 Feb 2010 14:16:04 GMT Investigators have identified a drug that is currently approved to treat certain types of cancer, Gleevec, that could provide the first therapy for scleroderma, a chronic connective tissue disease for which a therapy has remained elusive. The news will be presented at the annual meeting of the American College of Rheumatology on October 18 in Philadelphia........ ]]> http://medicineworld.org/stories/lead/7-2009/immune-responses-to-flu-vaccine.html http://medicineworld.org/stories/lead/7-2009/immune-responses-to-flu-vaccine.html Mon, 01 Feb 2010 14:16:04 GMT Patients with the autoimmune disease systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) have an increased risk of infection, due to both disturbances in their immune responses and therapy with immunosuppressive drugs. Because morbidity and mortality correlation to influenza are increased in immunocompromised patients, it is recommended that patients with SLE get annual flu shots, which are safe and do not increase disease activity. Both antibody and cell-mediated responses are involved in the immune response to influenza; in SLE, antibody responses to the vaccine are diminished, but it is not known if the same effect is seen in cell-mediated responses. A newly released study was the first to examine cell-mediated responses in SLE patients previous to and following influenza vaccination. The study was reported in the recent issue of Arthritis and Rheumatism (http://www.interscience.wiley.com/journal/arthritis)........ ]]> http://medicineworld.org/stories/lead/6-2009/surgery-in-patients-with-ra.html http://medicineworld.org/stories/lead/6-2009/surgery-in-patients-with-ra.html Mon, 01 Feb 2010 14:16:04 GMT A newly released study published by the American Society of Plastic Surgeons reveals that one of the most common conditions caused by Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) is best treated surgically, sooner rather than later. Patients with RA frequently experience a debilitating condition known as metacarpophalangeal joint disease, which is commonly treated by replacing the knuckle joints with solid silicone joints. However, this therapy (and others like it) has spurred great disagreement between hand surgeons and rheumatologists regarding the indications, timing and perceived outcomes of the procedure; rheumatologists tend to refer late-stage patients for surgery whereas hand surgeons think that earlier intervention can yield more positive outcomes........ ]]> http://medicineworld.org/stories/lead/6-2009/genes-smoking-and-rheumatoid-arthritis.html http://medicineworld.org/stories/lead/6-2009/genes-smoking-and-rheumatoid-arthritis.html Mon, 01 Feb 2010 14:16:04 GMT Recent genetic studies have revealed several new sites of genes that are risk factors for developing rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The strongest association with anti-citrullinated protein antibody (ACPA)-positive RA (ACPAs are autoantibodies detected in RA that are used as a major diagnostic tool) has been found for the HLA-DRB1 gene, and this site seems to play a central role in susceptibility to the disease in Caucasian populations. Prior studies have shown a high increase in the risk of ACPA-positive RA linked to smoking in those who have certain variations of the HLA-DRB1 gene. There are several types of such alleles correlation to a particular amino acid sequence known as shared epitope (SE). ACPAs occur in about 60 percent of RA patients and are closely associated with the presence of SE alleles. In fact, SE alleles are the strongest genetic risk factor for ACPA-positive RA........ ]]> http://medicineworld.org/stories/lead/6-2009/tai-chi-improves-pain-in-arthritis-sufferers.html http://medicineworld.org/stories/lead/6-2009/tai-chi-improves-pain-in-arthritis-sufferers.html Mon, 01 Feb 2010 14:16:04 GMT The results of a new analysis have provided strong evidence to suggest that Tai Chi is beneficial for arthritis. Specifically, it was shown to decrease pain with trends towards improving overall physical health, level of tension and satisfaction with health status. Musculoskeletal pain, such as that experienced by people with arthritis, places a severe burden on the patient and community and is recognized as an international health priority. Exercise treatment including such as strengthening, stretching and aerobic programs, have been shown to be effective for arthritic pain. Tai Chi, is a form of exercise that is regularly practiced in China to improve overall health and well-being. It is commonly preformed in a group but is also practiced individually at one's leisure, which differs from traditional exercise treatment approaches used in the clinic........ ]]> http://medicineworld.org/stories/lead/4-2009/looking-to-prevent-kidney-damage-in-lupus.html http://medicineworld.org/stories/lead/4-2009/looking-to-prevent-kidney-damage-in-lupus.html Mon, 01 Feb 2010 14:16:04 GMT Kidney damage linked to the autoimmune disease lupus is associated with a malfunction of immune cells that causes them to congregate in and attack the organs, scientists at UT Southwestern Medical Center have discovered in a mouse study. In a separate study with an international team, the scientists also observed that a certain set of genes appears to protect the kidneys from a different sort of immune attack in both mice and humans........ ]]> http://medicineworld.org/stories/lead/4-2009/new-drug-for-fibromyalgia.html http://medicineworld.org/stories/lead/4-2009/new-drug-for-fibromyalgia.html Mon, 01 Feb 2010 14:16:04 GMT For Tara Campbell, the onset of her fibromyalgia began slowly with repeated sore throats, fevers and fatigue. By the time she was diagnosed, a year later, she had become so debilitated by flulike symptoms and exhaustion that she often couldn't get off the couch all day. "Fall, a year ago, I hit my very, very worst," said Campbell, 39, of Walnut Creek, Calif. "I felt overall pain to the point that even when my children or husband just touched me it hurt"........ ]]> http://medicineworld.org/stories/lead/4-2009/vitamin-d-may-make-autoimmune-disease-worse.html http://medicineworld.org/stories/lead/4-2009/vitamin-d-may-make-autoimmune-disease-worse.html Mon, 01 Feb 2010 14:16:04 GMT Deficiency in vitamin D has been widely regarded as contributing to autoimmune disease, but a review appearing in Autoimmunity Reviews explains that low levels of vitamin D in patients with autoimmune disease appears to be a result rather than a cause of disease and that supplementing with vitamin D may actually exacerbate autoimmune disease........ ]]> http://medicineworld.org/stories/lead/3-2009/why-mostly-women-get-lupus.html http://medicineworld.org/stories/lead/3-2009/why-mostly-women-get-lupus.html Mon, 01 Feb 2010 14:16:04 GMT In an international human genetic study, scientists at UT Southwestern Medical Center have identified a gene associated with the autoimmune disease lupus, and its location on the X chromosome might help explain why females are 10 times more susceptible to the disease than males. Identifying this gene, IRAK1, as a disease gene may also have therapeutic implications, said Dr. Chandra Mohan, professor of internal medicine and senior author of the study. "Our work also shows that blocking IRAK1 action shuts down lupus in an animal model. Though a number of genes appears to be involved in lupus, we only have very limited information on them," he said........ ]]>