-
MRE Could Provide A Definitive Diagnosis For People With Muscle Pain, Study Shows
An estimated nine million men and women in the United States live with myofascial pain syndrome, a condition marked by pain that permeates muscles in the neck, back and shoulders. The condition is…
-
Vagus Nerve Stimulation: A New Way to Treat Rheumatoid Arthritis
Some people with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) take a disease-modifying antirheumatic drug (DMARD) and/or a biologic and reach remission. Others try drug after drug after drug and never find one that’s effective — or…
-
Taking Hydroxychloroquine for RA or Lupus Can Reduce Heart Risk by 17%
The anti-malarial drug lowers cholesterol and blood sugar and makes blood less sticky, which is good for reducing blood clots and heart attack risk. If you take the anti-malarial drug hydroxychloroquine (Plaquenil) as…
-
Have Asthma or COPD? You Could Have a Higher Risk of Rheumatoid Arthritis
Researchers hope that identifying the link between respiratory issues and RA will result in better ways to prevent or screen for rheumatoid arthritis in people with lung disease. You may have already heard…
-
If You’re in Remission on a DMARD for Rheumatoid Arthritis, Should You Taper? Here’s What New Research Says
New data compares what happens when the dosage of DMARDs such as methotrexate is tapered or kept steady. For most rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients, sustained remission (inactive disease) is the goal of taking…
-
If Rheumatoid Arthritis Inflammation Is Improving, Be Patient: Less Pain and Fatigue May Be Coming
Knowing there could be a lag between objective measures of improvement and patient-reported outcomes could help prevent over-treatment. When a rheumatologist measures disease activity in a patient with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), objective clinical…
-
This Is Important for RA Patients to Know: Taming Inflammation Doesn’t Always Alleviate Pain
“This may have implications for management decisions beyond treating to disease activity targets alone.” Pain and inflammation often go hand in hand, especially for people with inflammatory conditions like rheumatoid arthritis (RA). So…
-
Nearly 20% of People with Spondyloarthritis Also Have Fibromyalgia, New Data Show
Female patients were much more likely to have a dual diagnosis. Small studies have suggested an overlap between spondyloarthritis (SpA) and fibromyalgia, but now a larger meta-analysis confirms it: About 17 percent of…
-
30% of RA Patients Don’t See Fatigue Improve After Starting Treatment
And a few factors seemed to be responsible, including being obese and also having fibromyalgia. When most people think about rheumatoid arthritis (RA), they focus on joint pain, swelling, and stiffness. While those…
-
Medical Marijuana for Arthritis: Does Legal Status Affect Whether Patients Use It — or Talk to Their Doctor About It?
No matter who you talk to in the chronic pain, arthritis, and musculoskeletal disease community — patients, clinicians, researchers, public health experts — medical marijuana is controversial. Is it safe? Is it effective…
