Clin Exp Rheumatol
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Multicenter Study
The spectrum of early rheumatoid arthritis practice across the globe: results from a multinational cross sectional survey.
To explore patterns of real-world early RA (ERA) care across countries. ⋯ This study provides comparative benchmark information regarding the global provision of ERA care. Substantial variations exist in referral and early assessment pathways with guidelines having a most apparent impact in Northern Europe. Provision of an ERA service does not appear to be constrained by cost, with conceptual factors, e.g. clinician engagement, perhaps playing a role. These initial insights could potentially help harmonise ERA management across countries.
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Ultrasound (US) has acquired an increasing role in the assessment of joint and periarticular abnormalities in osteoarthritis (OA). It is able to image a large set of abnormalities in this disease which include both inflammatory and structural changes at different peripheral joint sites and it is helpful in guiding local procedures that can be easily and safely performed with optimal patient's tolerance. US is a feasible imaging modality that has become a bedside procedure in the rheumatology clinical practice, thus filling the gap between clinical and radiographic evaluations of patients with OA. The present review focuses and summarises the currently available data on the applications of US in OA.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Motor cortex tRNS improves pain, affective and cognitive impairment in patients with fibromyalgia: preliminary results of a randomised sham-controlled trial.
Fibromyalgia (FM) is a clinical syndrome characterised by widespread musculoskeletal pain, chronic fatigue, cognitive deficits, and sleep and mood disorders. The effectiveness of most pharmacological treatments is limited, and there is a need for new, effective and well-tolerated therapies. It has recently been shown that transcranial direct-current stimulation (tDCS) of the motor cortex reduces pain, and that tDCS of the dorso-lateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) improves anxiety, depression and cognitive impairment in FM patients. The new technique of transcranial random noise stimulation (tRNS) using randomly changing alternating currents has very recently been shown to improve working memory and pain in limited series of patients with FM or neuropathic pain. The aim of this study was to investigate the clinical effects of primary motor cortex (M1) tRNS in FM patients. ⋯ These findings suggest that tRNS of M1 can be very effective in relieving FM symptoms. Unlike motor cortex tDCS, it seems to counteract both pain and cognitive disturbances, possibly because the invoked mechanism of stochastic resonance synchronises neural firing and thus leads to more widespread and lasting effects.
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Fibromyalgia (FM) is a complex syndrome characterised by chronic pain, fatigue and functional symptoms. Widespread pain is often its most typical feature, whereas other manifestations may be associated to various extents. Its aetiopathogenesis is still a matter of debate, but various pharmacological and non-pharmacological therapies are currently available for its treatment. We review the literature concerning the most recent findings relating to the aetiopathogenesis, assessment and treatment of FM published between January 2016 and January 2017.
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Large-vessel vasculitides comprise giant cell arteritis and Takayasu's arteritis. In both conditions, early changes consist of transmural inflammation of the arterial wall, while later complications include lumen changes, such as stenoses or aneurysms. Colour Doppler sonography has the ability to depict the arterial wall as well as the lumen, and is therefore ideally suited both to diagnose early vasculitis and to monitor patients over time. In this review article, we addressed the following issues: 1) the role of colour Doppler sonography in the diagnosis of large-vessel vasculitis and its common pitfalls; 2) whether colour Doppler sonography can increase the yield of temporal artery biopsy in giant cell arteritis; 3) the role of colour Doppler sonography in monitoring patients with LVV over time; and 4) how colour Doppler sonography performs compared to other imaging techniques.