The advent of novel biological therapies for the treatment of rheumatic disease has renewed interest in the seronegative spondyloarthropathies (SpAs). International efforts are redefining disease classification and measures of disease activity, outcome, metrology, and imaging. However, opinion is divided between those who propose that the SpA group represents the same disease with variable expr...

Spondyloarthropathy has been reported among modern individuals of several species of ursid. Prehistoric cervical vertebra of black bear (Ursus americanus) recovered from an archaeological site in northwestern Oregon are fused and distorted, indicating spondyloarthropathy in this species has some time depth. Inventory of this disease among paleozoological remains may reveal unknown details of di...

OBJECTIVES To compare human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected and HIV-uninfected children with arthritis of unknown origin to determine whether the association between HIV infection and arthritis is causal or coincidental. METHOD Retrospective review of 132 children with arthritis who were tested for HIV infection. RESULTS Thirty-five (27%) of the children were HIV infected and the male...

Two B27 positive patients developed peripheral arthritis immediately after a significant musculoskeletal injury. Unlike previously reported peripheral arthritis precipitated by trauma in B27 positive subjects the arthritis was rapidly destructive.

PURPOSE To translate and adapt the Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Methodology Index (BASMI) - a metrological measurement for the assessment of patients with ankylosing spondylitis to Brazilian-Portuguese and to analyze the applicability of the questionnaire. METHODS The Brazilian-Portuguese version of the Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Methodology Index was achieved through a translation and back-t...

BACKGROUND Fibroblast-like synovial cells (FLS) can be cultured and expanded in vitro in monolayer. Little is known about the growth characteristics of FLS derived from different patients. OBJECTIVE To study FLS cultures, with particular attention to differences in growth rate of FLS from patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and from other arthritic patients. Additionally, to analyse the i...

OBJECTIVE Spondyloarthropathy has clearly been documented as not limited in occurrence to humans. Transmammalian in nature, it is of interest to understand the antiquity, and perhaps the origins, of this disorder in animal groups sufficiently represented in the skeletal record. METHODS Fossil and recent skeletons of perissodactylae from North America were systematically examined to determine ...

Treatment with a high-dose, intravenous bolus of methylprednisolone has been reported in numerous cases of rheumatic diseases. The optimal routes of administration, dosage, dosage interval, and other factors are unknown. This report describes uncontrolled clinical observations with a single dose of 320 mg of intramuscular methylprednisolone acetate in patients with rheumatic disease (12 with rh...

At the last EULAR congress in Nice this standing committee held an educational symposium on “Clinical Epidemiology in Practice”. This initiative was very well received and highly appreciated by the participants. Therefore, the committee organised a similar symposium at this congress. The standing committee will together with the standing committee chairmen of “Education and Training” (Professor...

P hysicians’ perceptions of the spondyloarthropathies are changing. Ankylosing spondylitis (AS), the prototype of this group, has traditionally been considered a rare disease with few therapeutic options. In addition, diagnosis is difficult, sometimes delayed for decades, mainly owing to the lack of sensitivity of the traditional imaging method, radiography, to detect the hallmark of AS, sacroi...