[Current data on rheumatological care: annual report from the National database (NDB) of the regional collaborative arthritis centres in Germany].

In the National database (NDB) of the German regional collaborative arthritis centres, annual data on the rheumatological care of patients with inflammatory rheumatic diseases have been collected since 1993. This first annual report presents current cross-sectional data on medication and patient-reported outcomes gathered in 2022.

Frequency-dependent behavior of paretic and non-paretic leg force during standing post stroke.

Maintaining upright posture in quiet standing is an important skill that is often disrupted by stroke. Despite extensive study of human standing, current understanding is incomplete regarding the muscle coordination strategies that produce the ground-on-foot force (F) that regulates translational and rotational accelerations of the body. Even less is understood about how stroke disrupts that coordination.

Control of center of mass motion during walking correlates with gait and balance in people with incomplete spinal cord injury.

Background: There is evidence that ambulatory people with incomplete spinal cord injury (iSCI) have an impaired ability to control lateral motion of their whole-body center of mass (COM) during walking. This impairment is believed to contribute to functional deficits in gait and balance, however that relationship is unclear. Thus, this cross-sectional study examines the relationship between the ability to control lateral COM motion during walking and functional measures of gait and balance in people with iSCI.

Physical Function of RA patients Tapering Treatment-A Post Hoc Analysis of the Randomized Controlled RETRO Trial.

Several studies have shown that tapering or stopping disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs) in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients in sustained remission is feasible. However, tapering/stopping bears the risk of decline in physical function as some patients may relapse and face increased disease activity. Here, we analyzed the impact of tapering or stopping DMARD treatment on the physical function of RA patients.

Treatment tapering and stopping in patients with rheumatoid arthritis in stable remission (RETRO): a multicentre, randomised, controlled, open-label, phase 3 trial.

Background: Owing to increasing remission rates, the management of patients with rheumatoid arthritis in sustained remission is of growing interest. The Rheumatoid Arthritis in Ongoing Remission (RETRO) study investigated tapering and withdrawal of disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs) in patients with rheumatoid arthritis in stable remission to test whether remission could be retained without the need to take DMARD therapy despite an absence of symptoms.

Methods: RETRO was an investigator-initiated, multicentre, prospective, randomised, controlled, open-label, parallel-group phase 3 trial in patients aged at least 18 years with rheumatoid arthritis for at least 12 months before randomisation who were in sustained Disease Activity Score using 28 joints with erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) remission (score <2·6 units).

Stabilization Strategies for Fast Walking in Challenging Environments With Incomplete Spinal Cord Injury.

Gait rehabilitation following incomplete spinal cord injury (iSCI) often aims to enhance speed and stability. Concurrently increasing both may be difficult though as certain stabilization strategies will be compromised at faster speeds. To evaluate the interaction between speed and lateral stability, we examined individuals with ( = 12) and without ( = 12) iSCI as they performed straight walking and lateral maneuvers at Preferred and Fast treadmill speeds.

Meaningful measurements of maneuvers: People with incomplete spinal cord injury 'step up' to the challenges of altered stability requirements.

Background: Many people with incomplete spinal cord injury (iSCI) have the ability to maneuver while walking. However, neuromuscular impairments create challenges to maintain stability. How people with iSCI maintain stability during walking maneuvers is poorly understood.

Correction to: Osteoporosis in patients with rheumatoid arthritis: trends in the German National Database 2007-2017.

The original article can be found online.

Osteoporosis in patients with rheumatoid arthritis: trends in the German National Database 2007-2017.

Osteoporosis is a frequent comorbidity in rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Due to the improved treatment options for RA, we expect a long-term decrease in osteoporosis as an accompanying disease. Data from the German National Database (NDB) were used to investigate whether the frequency of osteoporosis has changed in the last 10 years.

Biomechanics of Vertical Posture and Control with Referent Joint Configurations.

Our study compared the results of two methods of analysis of postural sway during human quiet standing, the rambling-trembling (-) decomposition and the analysis of the point of intersection of the ground reaction forces ( analysis). Young, healthy subjects were required to stand naturally and with an increased level of leg/trunk muscle co-activation under visual feedback on the magnitude of a combined index of muscle activation (muscle mode). The main findings included the shift of toward higher frequencies and strong correlations between and when the subjects stood with increased muscle co-activation.

Cost-effective Tapering Algorithm in Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis: Combination of Multibiomarker Disease Activity Score and Autoantibody Status.

Objective: To analyze the effect of a risk-stratified disease-modifying antirheumatic drug (DMARD)-tapering algorithm based on multibiomarker disease activity (MBDA) score and anticitrullinated protein antibodies (ACPA) on direct treatment costs for patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) in sustained remission.

Methods: The study was a posthoc retrospective analysis of direct treatment costs for 146 patients with RA in sustained remission tapering and stopping DMARD treatment, in the prospective randomized RETRO study. MBDA scores and ACPA status were determined in baseline samples of patients continuing DMARD (arm 1), tapering their dose by 50% (arm 2), or stopping after tapering (arm 3).

Long-term glucocorticoid treatment in patients with polymyalgia rheumatica, giant cell arteritis, or both diseases: results from a national rheumatology database.

The objective of this study was to evaluate glucocorticoid (GC) use in patients with polymyalgia rheumatica (PMR), giant cell arteritis (GCA) or both diseases (PMR + GCA) under rheumatological care. Data from patients with PMR (n = 1420), GCA (n = 177) or PMR + GCA (n = 261) from the National Database of the German Collaborative Arthritis Centers were analyzed regarding GCs and related comorbidities (osteoporosis, diabetes and cardiovascular disease), stratified by disease duration (DD). Longitudinal data were analyzed for all patients with a DD ≤ 2 years at database entry (n = 1397).

Antimodified protein antibody response pattern influences the risk for disease relapse in patients with rheumatoid arthritis tapering disease modifying antirheumatic drugs.

Objective: To perform a detailed analysis of the autoantibody response against post-translationally modified proteins in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) in sustained remission and to explore whether its composition influences the risk for disease relapse when tapering disease modifying antirheumatic drug (DMARD) therapy.

Methods: Immune responses against 10 citrullinated, homocitrullinated/carbamylated and acetylated peptides, as well as unmodified vimentin (control) and cyclic citrullinated peptide 2 (CCP2) were tested in baseline serum samples from 94 patients of the RETRO study. Patients were classified according to the number of autoantibody reactivities (0-1/10, 2-5/10 and >5/10) or specificity groups (citrullination, carbamylation and acetylation; 0-3) and tested for their risk to develop relapses after DMARD tapering.

Prediction of disease relapses by multibiomarker disease activity and autoantibody status in patients with rheumatoid arthritis on tapering DMARD treatment.

Objective: To analyse the role of multibiomarker disease activity (MBDA) score in predicting disease relapses in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) in sustained remission who tapered disease modifying antirheumatic drug (DMARD) therapy in RETRO, a prospective randomised controlled trial.

Methods: MBDA scores (scale 1-100) were determined based on 12 inflammation markers in baseline serum samples from 94 patients of the RETRO study. MBDA scores were compared between patients relapsing or remaining in remission when tapering DMARDs.

Relapse rates in patients with rheumatoid arthritis in stable remission tapering or stopping antirheumatic therapy: interim results from the prospective randomised controlled RETRO study.

Objective: To prospectively analyse the risk for disease relapses in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) in sustained remission, either continuing, tapering or stopping disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs) in a prospective randomised controlled trial.

Methods: Reduction of Therapy in patients with Rheumatoid arthritis in Ongoing remission is a multicentre, randomised controlled, parallel-group phase 3 trial evaluating the effects of tapering and stopping all conventional and/or biological DMARDs in patients with RA in stable remission. Patients (disease activity score 28 (DAS28)<2.

Clinical presentation, burden of disease and treatment in young-onset and late-onset rheumatoid arthritis: a matched-pairs analysis taking age and disease duration into account.

Objectives: The aim of this study is to compare clinical features and treatment of young onset rheumatoid arthritis with late-onset rheumatoid arthritis.

Methods: Nine thousand five hundred forty-one patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) enrolled in the national database of the German Collaborative Arthritis Centres in 2007-2009 were stratified by age at disease onset: up to 65 years (YORA), >65 years (LORA). To enable unbiased comparisons between the two groups despite their systematic differences in age and disease duration, we performed two separate matched-pairs analyses: the impact of current age was assessed by matching YORA and LORA patients for disease duration and sex (n=1,550 pairs).

Criminal justice involvement of armed forces veterans in two systems of care.

Objective: This study compared criminal justice involvement of veterans before and after receiving services from community-based programs of the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) (N=1,640) or a state Department of Mental Health (DMH) (N= 693).

Methods: Anonymous extracts from VHA, DMH, and statewide criminal charging databases were analyzed by probabilistic population estimation to determine criminal charging rates in the years before and after the year of service receipt in each system of care.

Results: Veterans who received DMH services experienced a greater reduction in the rate of criminal charging than veterans who received VHA services (43% and 17% reductions).

Generalizing the Dokshitzer-Gribov-Lipatov-Altarelli-Parisi evolution of fragmentation functions to the smallest values.

An approach valid to any order which unifies the fixed order Dokshitzer-Gribov-Lipatov-Altarelli-Parisi evolution of fragmentation functions at large x with soft gluon logarithmic resummation at small x is proposed. At lowest order, this approach, implemented with the double logarithmic approximation, reproduces exactly the modified leading logarithm approximation but is more complete due to the degrees of freedom given to the quark sector and the inclusion of the fixed order terms. We find that data from the largest x values to the peak region can be better fitted than with other approaches.