To investigate occupational and hobby exposures to silica, solvents, and heavy metals and odds of idiopathic inflammatory myositis (IIM) phenotypes, dermatomyositis (DM) and polymyositis (PM) versus inclusion body myositis (IBM), lung disease plus fever or arthritis (LD+), and systemic autoimmune rheumatic disease-overlap myositis (OM).

This work describes the demographics and practice characteristics of physician assistants/associates (PAs) practicing in rheumatology.

Osteoporosis, a known complication of rheumatoid arthritis (RA), increases the risk of hip fracture, which is associated with high morbidity and mortality. Fracture risk estimates in RA patients treated with contemporary treatment strategies are lacking. The objectives were 1) to estimate age- and sex-specific incidence rates and compare the risk of hip fractures in RA relative to age and sex-matched general population controls, and 2) to compare the risk of all-cause mortality in RA and general population controls after hip fracture.

Access to specialized orthopedic care is an important determinant of the decision to undergo total knee replacement (TKR); however, most studies have mainly utilized distance to the nearest high-volume hospital as the primary proxy for access. We applied the two-step floating catchment area (2SFCA) method to develop a more comprehensive TKR access score that accounts for other potential factors, i.e., supply of and demand for this procedure, that also affect access.

Organ damage in systemic sclerosis (SSc) in individual organs such as the lungs may be prevented by immunosuppressive drugs (IS). A new measure of global organ damage, the Scleroderma Clinical Trials Consortium Damage Index (SCTC-DI), has allowed us to investigate whether IS may reduce global organ damage accrual in early SSc.

This work aimed to evaluate the pharmacokinetics, efficacy, and safety of upadacitinib, an oral selective JAK inhibitor, in pediatric patients with polyarticular-course juvenile idiopathic arthritis (pcJIA).

The National Institute of Health and Care Excellence (NICE) criteria for osteoarthritis (OA) obviate the need for physical exam or imaging, and their use may improve timely diagnosis of OA. However, they have not been validated.

The objective of this study is to evaluate whether adding oral glucocorticoids to immunosuppressive therapy improves skin scores and ensures safety in patients with early diffuse cutaneous systemic sclerosis (dcSSc).

To assess changes in gene expression following tofacitinib treatment and investigate transcription patterns as potential predictors of treatment response in patients with active juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA).

Our aim was to determine the most significant barriers to total joint arthroplasty (TJA) for people living in high-poverty communities relative to low-poverty communities.

The study objective was to determine whether the clinical response of older adults with knee osteoarthritis and overweight or obesity to 18 months of diet and exercise (D + E) or attention control (C) interventions differed between participants from rural versus urban communities.

This study aimed to identify modifiable determinants of self-management behavior in gout.

The aim of this study was to determine the impact of season, temperature and humidity on the severity of Raynaud phenomenon (RP) in systemic sclerosis.

The objectives were to determine the prevalence of meeting criteria for symptoms suggestive of early osteoarthritis (OA) after anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction (ACLR) and to characterize the longitudinal changes in these symptoms during the first two years post-ACLR.

Many adolescent patients view their rheumatologist as their primary physician, and therefore it is important to screen youth for sexual activity and substance use as recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics. We implemented an electronic social history questionnaire (SHQ) and alert system to identify at-risk behaviors in adolescents with rheumatic disease.

The Osteoarthritis Chronic Care Program (OACCP) has been implemented in Australian public hospitals to deliver best evidence osteoarthritis (OA) care. It is important to ensure that the OACCP continues to deliver evidence-based OA care as intended. We aimed to identify barriers and enablers to delivering the OACCP, prioritize the barriers, and generate strategies to address them.

The objective was to examine potential pathways linking neighborhood disadvantage to pain severity in individuals with knee pain consistent with or at risk for Knee Osteoarthritis (KOA).

Granulomatosis with polyangiitis (GPA) and microscopic polyangiitis (MPA) are chronic life-threatening vasculitides requiring substantial immunotherapy. Adult trials identified rituximab (RTX) as an alternative to cyclophosphamide (CYC) for remission-induction of GPA/MPA. Disease rarity has limited feasibility of similar trials in pediatrics. We aim to evaluate the relative efficacy and toxicity of CYC and RTX for childhood GPA/MPA through registry-based comparative evaluation.

Racial and ethnic disparities in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) outcomes are well recognized. However, whether disparities in RA treatment selection and outcomes differ by urban versus rural residence, independent of race, have not been studied. Our objective was to evaluate whether biologic disease modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (bDMARD) initiation after methotrexate use differs by rural versus urban residence among Veterans with RA.

Individuals with inflammatory arthritis (IA) require long-term rheumatologist care for optimal outcomes. We sought to determine if socioeconomic status (SES) influences general practitioner (GP) and specialist physician visit frequency and out of pocket (OOP) visit costs.