Attitudes and practices in the laboratory monitoring of conventional synthetic disease modifying anti-rheumatic drugs by rheumatologists and rheumatology trainees.

Objectives: There is scant research about laboratory monitoring in people taking conventional synthetic disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (csDMARDs) for rheumatic disease. Our objective was to conduct a scoping study to assess the range of current attitudes and the variation in practice of laboratory monitoring of csDMARDs by rheumatologists and trainees.

Methods: Australian and overseas rheumatologists or trainees were invited through newsletter, Twitter and personal e-mail, to complete an anonymous online survey between 1 February and 22 March 2021.

Endorsement of the domains of knee and hip osteoarthritis (OA) flare: A report from the OMERACT 2020 inaugural virtual consensus vote from the flares in OA working group.

Objective: Towards developing an instrument to measure knee and hip osteoarthritis (KHOA) flare, the Outcome Measures in Rheumatology (OMERACT) Flares in OA Working Group first sought to identify and define relevant domains of flare in KHOA.

Methods: Guided by OMERACT Filter 2.1, candidate domains were identified from data generated in interviews, in English or French, with persons with KHOA and health professionals (HPs) who treat OA.

Cricopharyngeal bar and dermatomyositis: A cause of rapidly progressive dysphagia.

Background: Idiopathic inflammatory myopathies (IIM) are immune-mediated conditions that affect striated muscle, and are frequently associated with dysphagia. Dysphagia in these cases can be due to weakness of the muscles involved in swallowing or the presence of restrictive pharyngeal defects, such as cricopharyngeal bars. Treatment of dysphagia in IIM revolves around immunosuppressive therapies, and procedures to disrupt cricopharyngeus muscle when immunosuppressive therapies are unsuccessful.

Effectiveness and safety of recombinant human bone morphogenetic protein-2 versus local bone graft in primary lumbar interbody fusions.

Study Design: Retrospective cohort study.

Objective: To compare clinical outcomes, fusion rates, and rates of complications in posterior lumbar interbody fusions (PLIFs) and transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion procedures with either recombinant human bone morphogenetic protein-2 (rhBMP-2) and local bone graft (LBG) or LBG alone used as graft material.

Summary Of Background Data: rhBMP-2 is often used in PLIF and transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion procedures, but is associated with complications.

Combined antagonism of glutamate mGlu5 and adenosine A2A receptors interact to regulate alcohol-seeking in rats.

Adenosine and glutamate have been implicated as mediators involved in the self-administration of alcohol. In the present study we sought to determine whether adenosine receptors could interact with metabotropic glutamate receptors to regulate operant responding for alcohol and also the integration of the salience of alcohol-paired cues. Alcohol-preferring (iP) rats were trained to self-administer alcohol under operant conditions.