[Rheumatology : what's new in 2022].

In rheumatology, this year has seen an expansion of knowledge about the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, with the availability of results from randomized trials evaluating a new molecule targeting IL-6, and regarding the safety profile of tofacitinib compared to TNF-alpha inhibitors. Interesting data on the outcome of pregnancy in patients with spondylarthritis have also been published. New molecules and different treatment strategies have shown promising results in psoriatic arthritis and systemic lupus erythematosus.

[Monitoring of antirheumatic drugs].

Regular blood monitoring allows for treatment adjustments and early detection or even prevention of some side effects of antirheumatic dugs. Guidelines may vary between national societies for rheumatology, but largely recommend baseline screening followed by regular blood tests depending on the specific drug and duration of treatment. In this article we discuss the monitoring of the major antirheumatic drugs and further develop on some significant and specific drug side effects.

[Rheumatology: 2021 update].

In rheumatology, this year has seen an expansion of knowledge about the effects of COVID and the vaccine response in patients with autoimmune diseases, but also a re-examination of the usual doses of glucocorticoids in vasculitides and new treatments strategies for diseases such as systemic lupus erythematosus, spondylarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis. New criteria for imaging assessment in spondylarthritis and new management guidelines for patients with low back pain have also been proposed.

[Differential diagnosis and prognosis of inflammatory myopathies].

Inflammatory myopathies are characterized by muscle weakness, occasionally pain, and an inflammatory infiltrate of the skeletal muscle. Despite the description of novel autoantibodies and advances in imaging, the lack of universal consensus on classification criteria and routine clinical use of validated outcome measures has direct implications on treatment trials and observational registries. In this article we discuss the differential diagnosis and prognosis of the idiopathic inflammatory myopathies.

Treatment-resistant synovitis and radiographic progression are increased in elderly-onset rheumatoid arthritis patients: findings from a prospective observational longitudinal early arthritis cohort study.

Background: Clinical outcomes in elderly-onset rheumatoid arthritis (EORA), starting after the age of 60, are conflicting. Thus, we aimed to investigate in a unique biopsy-driven, treatment-naïve early arthritis cohort, the relationship between synovial pathobiology of elderly- (EORA) and younger-onset rheumatoid arthritis (YORA) patients through clinical, imaging and treatment response outcome-measures.

Methods: Patients (n = 140) with early RA (<12months) starting before (YORA, n = 99) or after (EORA, n = 41) age 60 had an ultrasound-guided synovial biopsy prior to conventional immunosuppressive therapy and after 6 months.

[Rheumatological complications of immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy].

Cancer management has been revolutionised by immune checkpoint inhibitors. Their use and indications increase in parallel with the recognition of their various side effects. Arthritis, myositis, and vasculitis are among the most common rheumatologic immune-related adverse events (irAE) of immunotherapy.

Ultrasound is not associated with the presence of systemic autoimmunity or symptoms in individuals at risk for rheumatoid arthritis.

Objective: To identify whether musculoskeletal ultrasound (MSUS) abnormalities are associated with specific phases of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) development in individuals at risk of RA.

Methods: This is a prospective cohort study of individuals at risk of developing RA, namely first-degree relatives of patients with RA (RA-FDRs) without evidence of established rheumatic disease at inclusion. The inflammatory activity on MSUS was assessed according to a validated score (SONAR).

Synovial cellular and molecular signatures stratify clinical response to csDMARD therapy and predict radiographic progression in early rheumatoid arthritis patients.

Objectives: To unravel the hierarchy of cellular/molecular pathways in the disease tissue of early, treatment-naïve rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients and determine their relationship with clinical phenotypes and treatment response/outcomes longitudinally.

Methods: 144 consecutive treatment-naïve early RA patients (<12 months symptoms duration) underwent ultrasound-guided synovial biopsy before and 6 months after disease-modifying antirheumatic drug (DMARD) initiation. Synovial biopsies were analysed for cellular (immunohistology) and molecular (NanoString) characteristics and results compared with clinical and imaging outcomes.

[Inflammatory arthritides pathotypes].

The pathophysiology of the inflammatory arthritides (IA) is complex and the result of interactions between genetic and environmental factors, leading to -in the case of seropositive rheumatoid arthritis-a breach of immune tolerance and subsequent development of joint and systemic manifestations. Regardless of the exact site of the initial immune dysregulation, the synovial membrane is the main target of IA. The heterogeneity of the clinical phenotypes is even more evident on the histological level (pathotypes), which in turn renders research on disease mechanisms more complicated.

US-Guided Biopsies: Overarching Principles.

Gathering synovial tissue from any swollen joint especially in early arthritis patients is critical for good quality research and to obtain further insight into the pathophysiology of inflammatory joint diseases. Multiplying biopsy sites is a challenge in terms of the techniques needed for each different joint but also in terms of safety and tolerability. It is important to provide the best care especially in very early arthritis patients who have only had the disease for a few months.

Ultrasound-Guided Synovial Biopsies of Wrists, Metacarpophalangeal, Metatarsophalangeal, Interphalangeal Joints, and Tendon Sheaths.

Ultrasound-guided synovial biopsy (UGSB) is a minimally-invasive procedure which allows quality synovial tissue retrieval. In this article, we will discuss overarching principles of the procedure performed in wrists, metacarpophalangeal (MCP), metatarsophalangeal (MTP), interphalangeal joints (IP), and tendon sheaths, including basic sonoanatomy, entry site and biopsy technique, as well as special considerations for each structure whenever relevant.

[Management of septic arthritis].

Native joint septic arthritis is a medical emergency requiring urgent joint drainage and antibiotic therapy. In the absence of an artificial joint or a foreign body, the « rheumatological approach » with repetitive arthrocentesis yields similar outcomes in the literature when compared to surgical drainage. Arthrocentesis could therefore be viewed as the preferential method of joint drainage as it is associated both with reduced morbidity for patients and decreased costs for the healthcare system.

[Drug-induced myopathies].

Drug myopathies are frequent and their identification important because of their potential morbidity. Apart from statins, the drugs most often involved are glucocorticoids, antimalarials, colchicine, and antiretrovirals. These myopathies are largely preventable, particularly those that occur in combinations of treatments or in the presence of comorbidities.

Low pre-treatment B-cell counts are not a risk factor of infection in patients treated with rituximab for autoimmune diseases: An observational study.

Objectives: Rituximab (RTX) is increasingly used in patients with refractory rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and other severe autoimmune diseases (AID). In practice, many clinicians are reluctant to prescribe RTX in patients with low B-cell counts because of the presumed risk of infection. The aim of this study was therefore to investigate whether B-cell counts before treatment or retreatment with RTX predict the occurrence of infections.

Ultrasound-guided synovial biopsy: a systematic review according to the OMERACT filter and recommendations for minimal reporting standards in clinical studies.

Objectives: To describe existing techniques of US-guided synovial biopsy (USG-SB) and critically appraise the literature on this technology through the OMERACT filter.

Methods: USG-SB techniques are described and compared. A systematic literature search of PubMed and Embase was performed for original research reports including US and SB.

Left main coronary artery perforation during percutaneous coronary intervention in a patient with noninfectious aortitis.

Noninfectious aortitis is increasingly recognized as an important cause of aortic aneurysms and dissection. Coronary involvement in noninfectious aortitis has been reported in several case reports and is marked by a high mortality. Here, we describe the case of a 72-year-old patient suffering from aortitis with involvement of the left main coronary artery trunk, who underwent percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), which was complicated by left coronary artery perforation.

Primary malignant achromic melanoma of the lung.

Currently, less than thirty cases of primary malignant melanoma of the lung have been reported in the literature. Thus, strict criteria for diagnosis have been published and include: malignant melanoma associated with bronchial epithelial changes; a solitary lung tumor; no prior history of skin, mucous membrane, intestinal or ocular melanoma; and absence of any other detectable tumor at the time of diagnosis. In this article we present a case of melanoma of the lung without evidence of extra-pulmonary disease.

Felty's syndrome and hypofibrinogenemia: an unusual target for anti-cyclic citrullinated peptide antibodies?

Background: Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a risk factor for the development of Felty's syndrome and large granular lymphocyte (LGL) leukemia. Anti-cyclic citrullinated peptide (CCP) antibodies are considered highly specific for RA and are directed against various citrullinated antigens, including citrullinated fibrinogen. Anti-CCP antibodies may interfere with the detection of citrullinated proteins and their function.

Classification, diagnosis, and management of idiopathic inflammatory myopathies.

The detection and characterization of a large array of autoantibodies, including at least 8 different antisynthetase, anti-SRP, -200/100 (HMGCR), -Mi-2, -CADM-140 (MDA5), -SAE, -p155, -MJ (NXP-2), and -PMS1, frequently associated with distinct and well-defined clinicopathological features, allowed for significant improvement in the definition and diagnosis of idiopathic inflammatory myopathies (IIM). Classification remains difficult, with lingering divergence between the different specialties involved in IIM care, but several categories clearly stand out, including dermatomyositis (DM), overlap myositis (OM), polymyositis, necrotizing myositis, and sporadic inclusion body myositis (s-IBM). Biopsy and histological analysis remain crucial, particularly in the absence of autoantibodies, to accurately specify the diagnosis and rule out mimics such as muscular dystrophies and metabolic myopathies.

[Use of glucocorticoids in low back pain due to disc herniation with radicular involvement].

Although systemic glucocorticoids are frequently used for the treatment of radicular pain due to disc herniation, there are only few studies available. No trial has successfully demonstrated the superiority of systemic glucocorticoids compared to placebo. Therefore their use is not recommended.