J Rheumatol
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To examine the associations between meniscal tear, knee structure, osteoarthritis (OA) risk factors, radiographic change, and symptoms in a largely non-osteoarthritic cohort. ⋯ Meniscal tear at specific sites shares risk factors with knee OA. Importantly, meniscal tear is associated with cartilage defect, loss of cartilage volume, alteration in bone size, and prevalence of radiographic OA, suggesting that meniscal tear in non-OA subjects appears to be an early event in the disease process, and may be a risk factor for knee cartilage damage and articular structural changes.
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Review Meta Analysis
Tramadol for osteoarthritis: a systematic review and metaanalysis.
Tramadol is increasingly used for the treatment of osteoarthritis (OA) because it does not produce gastrointestinal bleeding or renal problems and does not affect articular cartilage. We sought to determine the analgesic effectiveness, the effect on physical function, the duration of benefit, and the safety of oral tramadol in people with OA. ⋯ Tramadol or tramadol/paracetamol decreases pain intensity, produces symptom relief, and improves function in patients with OA, but these benefits are small.
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To obtain a consensus on the minimal clinically relevant treatment effect in various scleroderma disease outcome measures to be used in future clinical trials. ⋯ Our study begins to address the current deficiency in our knowledge of appropriate values for the minimal clinically relevant treatment effect in various scleroderma disease outcome measures. A consensus could be achieved, or at least a range of minimal clinically relevant treatment effect values could be found for several outcome measurements. Of course, this consensus statement will be modified by evidence as it accrues in each consensus area.
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To evaluate the development, validity, and reliability of 2 undergraduate Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) stations for core hand and knee examination skills. ⋯ These OSCE stations are valid and reliable tools for testing competency in core hand and knee examination skills. They can be used in educational research as outcome measures of specific teaching interventions and can also be used as an early feedback tool when teaching joint examination.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study
Immune responses following administration of influenza and pneumococcal vaccines to patients with rheumatoid arthritis receiving adalimumab.
This study compared the immunogenicity of influenza and pneumococcal vaccines in adult patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) receiving adalimumab or placebo. ⋯ Patients with RA treated with adalimumab can be effectively and safely immunized with pneumococcal and influenza vaccines.