Evolving and evaluating the OMERACT fellows program: insights and implications from OMERACT 2023 fellows.

Objective: To describe the evolution of the OMERACT Fellows Program (OM FP) and to evaluate the innovative changes implemented in the 2023 program.

Methods: The OM FP, the first of its kind in global rheumatology, was developed in 2000 to mentor early career researchers in methods and processes for reaching evidence-driven consensus for outcome measures in clinical studies. The OM FP has evolved through continuing iterations of face to face and online feedback.

Identification of outcome domains in immune checkpoint inhibitor-induced inflammatory arthritis and polymyalgia rheumatica: A scoping review by the OMERACT irAE working group.

Introduction: Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI), increasingly used cancer therapeutics, can cause off-target inflammatory effects called immune-related adverse events (irAEs), including ICI-induced inflammatory arthritis (ICI-induced IA) and polymyalgia rheumatica (ICI-induced PMR). There are no validated classification criteria or outcome measures for these conditions, and adaptation of treatment recommendations from corresponding rheumatic diseases may not be appropriate. We summarized clinical descriptors of ICI-induced IA and ICI-induced PMR and aggregated domains used for these conditions in order to inform the development of a core set of outcome domains.

Immune Checkpoint Inhibitor-Associated Myositis: A Distinct Form of Inflammatory Myopathy.

Research on the relationship between inflammatory myopathy and malignancy has grown considerably within the last century. Now, the burgeoning field of inflammatory myopathy has yet another player in the mix: immune checkpoint inhibitor-associated myositis (ICI myositis). Immune checkpoint inhibitor-associated myositis is indicated by clinical diagnosis of inflammatory myopathy after initiation of immune checkpoint inhibitor for cancer management.

Epidemiology of Sports-Related Traumatic Hip Dislocations Reported in United States Emergency Departments, 2010-2019.

Background: Traumatic hip dislocations are rare injuries that most commonly occur in motor vehicle accidents. There is a paucity of literature that describes sports-related hip dislocations.

Purpose: To estimate the incidence of sports-related hip dislocations and determine any sport- or sex-related epidemiological trends using the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System (NEISS) database.

The Return-to-Sport Clearance Continuum Is a Novel Approach Toward Return to Sport and Performance for the Professional Athlete.

Unlabelled: The concept of returning to sport for a professional athlete is still under debate for the professional athlete in today's sports environment. It is critical for the professional athlete to be able to return to sport at a highly competitive level but also to return in a safe and timely measure. With no "gold standard" of sport testing, it is difficult to determine what the right progression or testing regimen should be.

Lower baseline autoantibody levels are associated with immune-related adverse events from immune checkpoint inhibition.

Introduction: Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI) are a novel cancer therapeutic that have been successful in treating advanced malignancies; however, they also cause immune-related adverse events (irAE). Given that some irAE are clinically similar to traditional autoimmune diseases, autoantibodies have been suggested as possible biomarkers of irAE. However, there are very little data on autoantibody investigation prior to ICI.

Paravertebral Block with Compound Betamethasone in Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy: A Double-blind Randomized Controlled Trial.

Backgrounds The aim of this study was to evaluate the utility of unilateral single injection thoracic paravertebral block (TPVB) with and without the addition of betamethasone for the acute pain management of patient's undergoing laparoscopic cholecystectomy (LC). Methods Eligible patients were allocated randomly to three groups: (A) general anesthesia followed by surgeon infiltration at port sites with ropivacaine (n = 48), (B) general anesthesia after single injection TPVB at right T7-8 level with ropivacaine only, Ropi_TPVB (n = 43), and (C) general anesthesia after single injection TPVB with ropivacaine plus betamethasone, Ropi_Betamet_TPVB (n = 45). Primary outcome was TPVB duration assessed by the number of dermatomes at regular intervals up to 72 hours (h).

Prevalence and Characteristics of Metabolic Syndrome Differ in Men and Women with Early Rheumatoid Arthritis.

Objective: Metabolic syndrome (MetS) prevalence in early rheumatoid arthritis (ERA) is conflicting. The impact of sex, including menopause, has not been described. We estimated the prevalence and factors associated with MetS in men and women with ERA.

Association of Arthritis Onset with Influenza: Analysis of the Canadian Early Inflammatory Arthritis Cohort.

Objective: To evaluate seasonal patterns of early inflammatory arthritis (IA) onset and potential associations with IA symptom onset.

Methods: The Canadian Early Arthritis Cohort (CATCH) is an inception cohort study of adults with early (12 months or less) IA. We used patient reports of symptom onset as a proxy of IA onset and examined the seasonal distribution of IA onset over 10 years.

Risk factors for postoperative delirium in patients undergoing lower extremity joint arthroplasty: a retrospective population-based cohort study.

Background: With an ageing population, the demand for joint arthroplasties and the burden of postoperative delirium is likely to increase. Given the lack of large-scale data, we investigated associations between perioperative risk factors and postoperative delirium in arthroplasty surgery.

Methods: This retrospective population-based cohort study, utilized national claims data from the all-payer Premier Healthcare database containing detailed billing information from >25% nationwide hospitalizations.

Latest advances in intervertebral disc development and progenitor cells.

This paper is a concise review aiming to assemble the most relevant topics presented by the authors at ORS-Philadelphia Spine Research Society . It centers on the latest advances in disc development, its main structural entities, and the populating cells, with emphasis on the advances in pivotal molecular pathways responsible for forming the intervertebral discs (IVD). The objective of finding and emphasizing pathways and mechanisms that function to control tissue formation is to identify and to explore modifications occurring during normal aging, disease, and tissue repair.

Fluid and pain management in liver surgery (MILESTONE): A worldwide study among surgeons and anesthesiologists.

Background: Fluid and pain management during liver surgery (eg, low central venous pressure) is a classic topic of controversy between anesthesiologists and surgeons. Little is known about practices worldwide. The aim of this study was to assess perioperative practices in liver surgery among and between surgeons and anesthesiologists worldwide that could guide the design of future international studies.

Evidence Review Conducted for the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality Safety Program for Improving Surgical Care and Recovery: Focus on Anesthesiology for Total Hip Arthroplasty.

Successes using enhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS) protocols for total hip arthroplasty (THA) are increasingly being reported. As in other surgical subspecialties, ERAS for THA has been associated with superior outcomes, improved patient satisfaction, reduced length of hospital stay, and cost savings. Nonetheless, the adoption of ERAS to THA has not been universal.

Evidence Review Conducted for the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality Safety Program for Improving Surgical Care and Recovery: Focus on Anesthesiology for Total Knee Arthroplasty.

Enhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS) has rapidly gained popularity in a variety of surgical subspecialities. A large body of literature suggests that ERAS leads to superior outcomes, improved patient satisfaction, reduced length of hospital stay, and cost benefits, without affecting rates of readmission after surgery. These patterns have been described for patients undergoing elective total knee arthroplasty (TKA); however, adoption of ERAS to orthopedic surgery has lagged behind other surgical disciplines.

Assessment of Vertebral Curves Using the Manual Post-It Technique.

Study Design: A prospective study of a new technique.

Objective: The aims of this study were to report a manual technique for measuring vertebral curves on digital spine radiographs, and to assess the agreement of this technique with that of digital software for measuring vertebral curves.

Summary Of Background Data: Modern picture archiving and communication systems (PACS) typically include software for evaluating radiographic measurements.

Improvement in Pain After Lumbar Spine Surgery: The Role of Preoperative Expectations of Pain Relief.

Objectives: Improvement in pain is a major expectation of patients undergoing lumbar spine surgery.

Materials And Methods: Among 422 patients, the goal of this prospective study was to measure 2-year postoperative pain and to determine whether this outcome varied according to patient and clinical characteristics, including amount of pain relief expected preoperatively. Before surgery patients completed valid questionnaires that addressed clinical characteristics and expectations for pain improvement.

Factors Associated With Increased Risk of Clubfoot: A Norwegian National Cohort Analysis.

Background: Previous studies investigating the causes of clubfoot have shown conflicting results, potentially because of retrospective study designs or incomplete assessment of causative factors. The study aim was to examine risk factors for clubfoot in a large prospective Norwegian cohort.

Methods: Exposures prior and during pregnancy were identified through the Norwegian Mother and Child Cohort Study (MoBa) conducted by the Norwegian Institute of Public Health.

Unplanned Reoperations Affect Long-Term Outcomes in Adult Spinal Deformity Patients Undergoing Long Fusions to the Sacrum.

Study Design: Retrospective clinical cohort study.

Objective: To compare the long-term complications and outcomes scores of primary and revision surgeries for adult spinal deformity of patients treated with long fusions to the sacrum.

Summary Of Background Data: Long fusions in patients with adult spinal deformity are fraught with complications and the need for reoperation that can significantly impact patient health-related quality of life.

Piloting a Text Message-based Social Support Intervention for Patients With Chronic Pain: Establishing Feasibility and Preliminary Efficacy.

Objectives: To examine preliminarily the effectiveness of a short message service (SMS) text message-based social support intervention for reducing daily pain and pain interference levels, improving affect and perceptions of social support in patients with chronic noncancer pain, and exploring the feasibility of a novel mobile application to track perceptions of pain and pain interference.

Materials And Methods: Participants (17 men, 51 women) from 2 pain clinics in New York City downloaded a pain tracking application (App) on their Smartphone and used it to record twice-daily pain, pain interference, and affect scores over the 4-week study period. Participants were randomly assigned to receive standard care (control) or standard care along with receipt of twice-daily supportive SMS text messages delivered during the second and third week of the study (intervention).

Refractory sarcoid arthritis in World Trade Center-exposed New York City firefighters: a case series.

Objective: The objective of this study was to describe cases of sarcoid arthritis in firefighters from the Fire Department of the City of New York (FDNY) who worked at the World Trade Center (WTC) site.

Methods: All WTC-exposed FDNY firefighters with sarcoidosis and related chronic inflammatory arthritis (n = 11) are followed jointly by the FDNY-WTC Health Program and the Rheumatology Division at the Hospital for Special Surgery. Diagnoses of sarcoidosis were based on clinical, radiographic, and pathological criteria.

Effect of age at menopause on disease presentation in early rheumatoid arthritis: results from the Canadian Early Arthritis Cohort.

Objective: Studies suggest that hormonal states affect disease characteristics in women with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). This study investigated how age at menopause affects disease in women presenting with early RA.

Methods: This was a cross-sectional study of postmenopausal women with early RA under age 65 years at time of enrollment in the Canadian Early Arthritis Cohort.

Effect of interleukin-6 receptor blockade on surrogates of vascular risk in rheumatoid arthritis: MEASURE, a randomised, placebo-controlled study.

Objectives: The interleukin-6 receptor (IL-6R) blocker tocilizumab (TCZ) reduces inflammatory disease activity in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) but elevates lipid concentrations in some patients. We aimed to characterise the impact of IL-6R inhibition on established and novel risk factors in active RA.

Methods: Randomised, multicentre, two-part, phase III trial (24-week double-blind, 80-week open-label), MEASURE, evaluated lipid and lipoprotein levels, high-density lipoprotein (HDL) particle composition, markers of coagulation, thrombosis and vascular function by pulse wave velocity (PWV) in 132 patients with RA who received TCZ or placebo.