DO-MD debate, paid family leave dominate Healio rheumatology coverage in 2022

Healio Rheumatology’s stories “stifling the negativity” between DOs and MDs, and documenting the health care industry’s lack of response to “tectonic shifts” in paid family leave, were by far its most popular among readers in 2022.

As 2022 comes to a close, and 2023 is just over the horizon, Healio has compiled a list of the 10 best-performing rheumatology stories from the past year:

‘Stifling the negativity’: Putting the DO-MD debate to bed for good

During a September 2021 interview on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, comedian Hasan Minhaj referred to doctors of osteopathic medicine, or DOs, as “off-brand doctors” compared with their MD counterparts. The medical community — MDs and DOs alike — hit back. Read more.

Health care industry struggles to keep pace with ‘tectonic shift’ in paid family leave

For a growing number of Americans, 12 weeks of paid leave from work after the birth of a child, or to care for an ailing family member, is standard. For many health care providers, including physicians and nurses, the reality of paid leave is much different. Read more.

Sotrovimab no longer authorized to treat COVID-19 in areas with high BA.2 frequency

The monoclonal antibody sotrovimab is no longer authorized by the FDA to treat COVID-19 in certain U.S. regions with high frequency of the omicron BA.2 subvariant. Read more.

Approximately 1 in 8 patients with COVID-19 experience long COVID

Post-COVID, or long COVID, can develop in approximately one in eight people with COVID-19, according to data published in The Lancet. Read more.

JAK inhibition’s cardiovascular, malignancy risks are a ‘moving target’

Making sense of real-world data and black-box warnings associated with Janus kinase inhibitors can be challenging for rheumatologists hoping to prescribe these medications, according to a presenter at ACR Convergence 2022. Read more.

‘Clearly already scared’: Rheumatology providers, patients brace for Roe v. Wade reversal

The news that the Supreme Court may overturn Roe v. Wade sent a shockwave through all corners of the United States. After reproductive health care providers and pregnant people, that shock may arguably be felt most acutely by patients with rheumatic and autoimmune diseases, and the providers who treat them. Read more.

Much about post-acute COVID syndromes remains ‘poorly defined’

Despite a growing body of evidence documenting the existence of post-acute COVID-19 syndromes, there remain many more questions than answers, according to data presented at the Basic and Clinical Immunology for the Busy Clinician symposium. Read more.

'Horribly mismanaged': Debate over gout treatment rages as cases surge

All around the world, gout prevalence is growing at an alarming pace, while gout treatment remains as “horribly mismanaged” as ever. Read more.

WHO strongly recommends baricitinib plus corticosteroids for severe, critical COVID-19

The WHO has issued a “strong recommendation” for baricitinib, in combination with corticosteroids, in the treatment of patients with severe or critical COVID-19. Read more.

Patients using antihistamines show decreased structural progression in knee osteoarthritis

Patients with knee osteoarthritis receiving antihistamines demonstrate less structural disease progression, compared with those who did not take antihistamines, over 2 years, according to data presented at the EULAR 2022 Congress. Read more.