Pure erythroid leukemia.

Pure erythroid leukemia is a rare and aggressive form of acute leukemia with a deleterious clinical course. It is of erythroid lineage without myeloblastic component, representing >80% of marrow cellularity, with ≥30% proerythroblasts.

Reliability and Validity of the Clinical Measurement of Trunk List in Children and Adolescents With Idiopathic Scoliosis.

Study Design: Reliability-validity study.

Objectives: The plumbline is commonly used to evaluate trunk list in a clinical setting. The purpose of this study was to evaluate reliability and validity of the plumbline to measure trunk list in persons with idiopathic scoliosis.

Early consultation with a rheumatologist for RA: does it reduce subsequent use of orthopaedic surgery?

Objective: Optimal care in RA includes early use of DMARDs to prevent joint damage and hopefully decrease the need for costly surgical interventions. Our objective was to determine whether a reduced rate of orthopaedic surgery was evident for persons with RA who saw a rheumatologist early in the disease course.

Methods: We studied persons who had a diagnosis of RA based on billing code data in the province of Quebec in 1995, and for whom the initial date of RA diagnosis by a non-rheumatologist could be established before the confirmatory diagnosis by the rheumatologist.

Inter-rater reliability of the evaluation of muscular chains associated with posture alterations in scoliosis.

Background: In the Global postural re-education (GPR) evaluation, posture alterations are associated with anterior or posterior muscular chain impairments. Our goal was to assess the reliability of the GPR muscular chain evaluation.

Design: Inter-rater reliability study.

Access and perceived need for physical and occupational therapy in chronic arthritis.

Purpose: Physical and occupational therapy are beneficial for persons with chronic arthritis; however, access is problematic. The goal was to examine issues related to access to these services for patients with chronic arthritis.

Methods: We used two data sources: 1) questionnaires sent to a random sample of 600 family physicians and to all 85 rheumatologists in the province of Quebec; and 2) interviews of 211 patients with physician-confirmed chronic arthritis recruited from 34 primary care settings in Quebec.

The incidence of juvenile rheumatoid arthritis in Quebec: a population data-based study.

Objective: To determine the population incidence of juvenile rheumatoid arthritis (JRA) in Quebec.

Methods: We obtained data from Quebec's physician claims database. Incident cases were defined as having a visit for JRA in 2000, no visit in the previous 3 years, a confirmed diagnosis by an arthritis specialist, or having >/= 2 visits to any physician for JRA, >/= 2 months apart but within 2 years.

Prescription of topical antiglaucoma agents for patients with contraindications to beta-blockers.

Background: In Canada, public drug plans may restrict the use of newer topical antiglaucoma agents. The goals of this retrospective study were to estimate the proportion of patients who, at the initiation of topical glaucoma therapy, had contraindications to the use of topical beta-blockers and to identify whether changes in formulary listing status (from restricted-drug list to generally available drug list) influenced the use of topical glaucoma agents in patients with contraindications to beta-blockers.

Methods: Claims databases administered by the Régie de l'assurance maladie du Quebec were used to identify incident users of beta-blockers (betaxolol and timolol) and newer antiglaucoma agents (brimonidine, dorzolamide and latanoprost) among patients aged 35 years or older.