Rheumatology
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People with RA have episodes of worsening disease activity (flares) that prompt them to seek clinical review or medication change. This study explored patients' perspectives of flare that prompts them to seek medication review. ⋯ Patients use flare for multiple events and seek help for complex clusterings of intense, unprovoked symptoms that defy self-management, not necessarily captured in joint counts or global VAS. Flare terminology and definition have implications for clinical practice and trials, therefore further research should establish a professional/patient consensus.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study
Treatment of trigger finger: randomized clinical trial comparing the methods of corticosteroid injection, percutaneous release and open surgery.
The aim of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of CS injection, percutaneous pulley release and conventional open surgery for treating trigger finger in terms of cure, relapse and complication rates. ⋯ The percutaneous and open surgery methods displayed similar effectiveness and proved superior to the conservative CS method regarding the trigger cure and relapse rates. Trial registration. Current Controlled Trials, http://www.controlled-trials.com/, ISRCTN19255926.
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To test the correlation between assessment of inflammation using dynamic contrast-enhanced MRI (DCE-MRI) analysed by a novel computer-aided approach and semi-quantitative scores of synovitis and bone marrow oedema (BME) using the OMERACT-RA MRI Scoring (RAMRIS) system, in the wrist of patients with RA. ⋯ Computer-aided analysis of DCE-MRI data correlated with RAMRIS synovitis and BME and was twice as fast to perform. This technique may be useful for quick semi-automated assessment of joint inflammation, but needs further validation.
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To assess the safety and symptomatic changes of IA injections of platelet-rich plasma (PRP) in patients with OA of the hip. ⋯ This preliminary non-controlled prospective study supported the safety, tolerability and efficacy of PRP injections for pain relief and improved function in a limited number of patients with OA of the hip.