ArthritisDigest2013
Rheumatoid arthritis referrals in the UK are delayed by test results
False negative results in a test for rheumatoid arthritis are associated with referral delays of over six weeks for patients, suggests research due to be presented at the British Society for Rheumatology’s conference Rheumatology 2014.
Scientists from the University of Oxford and the University of Bath looked at data from 64,000 people undergoing rheumatoid factor (RF) testing in primary care. Continue reading
New drug – apremilast – benefits psoriatic arthritis
A drug called apremilast has a positive impact on people with psoriatic arthritis says a phase III clinical trial published in the Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases.
The study aimed to assess the advantages of apremilast in treating 504 people with active psoriatic arthritis who had already been treated with disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs) and/or a biologic therapy.
The volunteers were split into three groups. Some received 20mg apremilast twice a day, others had 30mg apremilast twice a day and the third group received a placebo. Continue reading
Ratio between fingers could mean greater risk of knee osteoarthritis
A potential link has been found between risk of developing osteoarthritis in the knee and people’s index/ring finger ratios, reveals research in Rheumatology that involved 14,511 participants. (index = 2nd finger, ring = 4th finger)
Experts measured finger ratios of the volunteers from hand photocopies and looked at records of total knee replacement and total hip replacement over a 10.5 year follow-up period. Continue reading
Mindfulness therapy for osteoarthritis pain
Mindfulness-based therapies could be key to reducing chronic pain of arthritis and similar conditions, suggests work published in the European Journal of Neuroscience.
Chronic pain affects up to about 30% of the population at any one time and is often due to arthritis. The extent of the pain, however, can be poorly related to the amount of damage and can spread to nearby regions of the body where there is no evidence of arthritic disease. Continue reading
Silk screws set to transform surgery
Screws made entirely from silk have been used to fix broken bones in research that could revolutionise surgery.
Medical engineers from the US have made screws from medical grade silk using especially designed moulds. When they tested the approach on rodents they found that the natural fibre eventually dissolved in the body. Continue reading
