Arthritis

Results of a matched cohort comparison of 45 patients with medial meniscal root tears who underwent either nonsurgical management, partial meniscectomy or repair showed significant differences among the groups for progression to knee arthroplasty, with the meniscus root repair group having significantly less arthritic progression based on changes in Kellgren-Lawrence grade.

Use of silicate-substituted calcium phosphate bone substitute had equivalent knee laxity and clinical function outcomes compared with autologous bone graft 3 years after two-stage ACL reconstruction, according to published results.

Uptake of infliximab biosimilars has been slow throughout the University of Pennsylvania Health System compared with the nearby Philadelphia Veterans Affairs Medical Center, which has realized savings from their use, according to findings published in Arthritis & Rheumatology.

The prevalence of antinuclear antibodies, markers of the body’s immune responses against its own cells, has increased significantly in the United States over the past several decades, particularly among adolescents and adults aged 50 years and older, according to data published in Arthritis & Rheumatology.

The American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons announced Braden C. Fleming, PhD, received the Orthopaedic Research and Education Foundation Clinical Research Award for more than 15 years of clinical research conducted with his colleagues into certain mechanical, psychological and biological factors that may lead to the onset and progression of post-traumatic osteoarthritis following ACL reconstruction.

A new total wrist replacement device has been approved by the FDA, according to a Hospital for Special Surgery release.

Single arthroscopic irrigation and debridement effectively eradicated septic arthritis among most native shoulder joints, with volume of irrigation reported as an important factor to prevent additional surgical management, according to published results.

With more than 300,000 children with arthritis and other rheumatic conditions across the United States, and fewer than 350 pediatric rheumatologists to treat them, Monica L. Friedman, DO, of Orlando Health Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children, is on the front lines of the growing rheumatology shortage.

Of the estimated 54.4 million adults in the United States with arthritis, approximately 32.1% also had a history of depression, according to 2017 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System data collected by the CDC. In addition, 19% of adults with arthritis also had frequent mental distress.

Common sense might dictate that, in maintaining health and wellness, being proactive is generally better than being reactive. But the practice of medicine often demands more than just common sense — it demands data and evidence to support clinical decision making. The discussion of therapeutic drug monitoring for biologic therapies hinges on this conundrum. Proactive monitoring appears to be the common-sense approach, but the data supporting its use have not yet closed the case.