Measuring disease activity and response to treatment in rheumatoid arthritis

Introduction: Effective treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) requires suppression of the underlying inflammation. Measurement of such inflammation, the disease activity, is mandatory to target treatment and maximize outcomes. However, this is not as straightforward as it may seem.

Areas covered: The many tools developed to measure disease activity in RA, from composite scores and patient-reported outcomes, to laboratory markers and imaging are discussed, with a focus on their utility in guiding therapy and assessing response. The complex issues in measuring disease activity in RA, whether in clinical trials or normal clinical practice, and in the context of national guidelines and recommendations, available time, and resources are considered.

Expert commentary: The key to effective management of RA is the rapid suppression of inflammation, ideally to remission, with maintenance of such remission. The aim is to prevent disability and maximize quality of life. Central to this is the ability to determine disease activity (potentially open to suppression) as opposed to damage (irreversible). A variety of measures are currently available, allowing better assessment of response to treatment. In the future, the development of predictive biomarkers allowing targeting of drugs may revolutionize this field and render the tools of today redundant.     

Treatment consensus for management of polymyositis and dermatomyositis among rheumatologists,neurologists and dermatologists

Although rheumatologists, neurologists and dermatologists see patients with polymyositis (PM) and dermatomyositis (DM), their management appears to vary depending on the physician's specialty. The aim of the present study was to establish the treatment consensus among specialists of the three fields to standardize the patient care. We formed a research team supported by a grant from the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare, Japan. Clinical questions (CQ) on the management of PM and DM were raised. A published work search on CQ was performed primarily using PubMed. Using the nominal group technique, qualified studies and results in the published work were evaluated and discussed to reach consensus recommendations. They were sent out to the Japan College of Rheumatology, Japanese Society of Neurology and Japanese Dermatological Association for their approval. We reached a consensus in 23 CQ and made recommendations and a decision tree for management was proposed. They were officially approved by the three scientific societies. In conclusion, a multidisciplinary treatment consensus for the management of PM and DM was established for the first time.     

Cognitive rehabilitation for individuals with opioid use disorder: A randomized controlled trial*

Aim: To examine the efficacy of cognitive rehabilitation treatment (CRT) for people with opioid use disorder who were recruited into a methadone maintenance treatment (MMT) programme.

Method: 120 male subjects were randomly assigned to (1) MMT plus CRT in two months or (2) MMT plus a control intervention. Subjects were assessed at the beginning, mid-point and post-intervention as well as at 1-, 3- and 6-month follow-up time points.

Results: Analysis with repeated measure ANOVA showed that the CRT group performed significantly better in tests of learning, switching, processing speed, working memory and memory span. Moreover, the CRT group had significantly lower opiate use over the control group during 3-months follow-up. Analysis including only those with a history of methamphetamine use showed that the CRT group had significantly lower amphetamine use. No group differences were observed for treatment retention.

Conclusions: Our findings provide evidence that adding CRT as an adjunct intervention to MMT can improve cognitive performance as well as abstinence from both opiates and stimulants.     

Arthroscopically Assisted Anterior Treatment of Symptomatic Large Talar Bone Cyst

Symptomatic cystic lesions of the talus are rare. The traditional operations usually do not provide visualization to reveal the deep structure of the lesion and could cause cartilage damage or other severe traumatic injury. We report an operative technique to reach the cystic lesion without talar cartilage damage, remove the lesion, and fill defect with a bone graft assisted by anterior arthroscopy and evaluate its safety and reliability for future study. Seven cases of talar bone cyst were included. The patients were placed in the supine position after anesthesia induction and noninvasive ankle traction was applied. Standard anteromedial and anterolateral portals were established to observe the ankle; the distal end of the medial approach was moderately enlarged to 2 to 3 cm. The biopsy specimen of the cyst was obtained under arthroscopic guidance; the cyst wall was abraded and the sclerotic rim drilled. Arthrocare radiofrequency ablation was performed to prevent recurrence. The defect was tightly impacted with autologous or allograft cancellous bone. All cysts in these cases were located in the medial talus; anteroposterior radiographs and computed tomographic coronary scan showed a cyst diameter of >1?cm. Intraoperative inspection showed a tiny chondral gap on the talar dome in 1 case and on the medial wall of talus in 1 case; no cartilage injury was found in the remainder. Two cases were impacted with grafted autogenous iliac bone into the talar defect and 5 cases with allograft cancellous bone. Computed tomography confirmed that the cysts had healed, with no signs of recurrence found in any patient at 1 year postoperatively. The mean American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society ankle-hindfoot scale score increased from 65 preoperatively to 91 points postoperatively, a statistically significant difference (p?<?.01). No complications developed and no reoperations were required postoperatively. Arthroscopically assisted anterior treatment with autologous or allograft bone graft is an effective method for symptomatic large talar bone cysts.     

从“伏毒”论治肺癌

国医大师周仲英提出伏毒论。"伏毒"是伏而后发的毒邪,潜藏人体,待时而发,具有伏时不觉,发时始显的特点。肺癌的发生发展可看作是"伏毒"潜藏人体,暗耗正气,逐渐正邪不能相安共处,或因新邪引触,导致伏毒暴戾发病的过程。肺癌之伏毒主要以热毒、痰毒、瘀毒为主,正虚为伏毒潜藏、致病的基础。治疗上可在伏毒理论的指导下,辨病、分期、辨证论治,把握时机,攻毒扶正。     

唐方教授脏腑辨证治疗小儿急性咳嗽经验

小儿急性咳嗽作为儿科常见病,因小儿脏腑娇嫩、形气未充,具有发病急骤、传变迅速的病理特点,故易出现各种变证,建立完善的小儿急性咳嗽诊治体系就显得尤为重要。因咳嗽病程不同,病邪部位有异,辨证论治之法亦有不同,唐方教授通过多年临床实践归纳和总结出小儿咳嗽从"肺胃肝三脏"治疗理论。该理论以脏腑辨证为基础,具有紧抓主症、用药考究、灵活加减的特点。临床用药加减则依据肺主宣发肃降,故多予炙麻黄、桔梗开宣肺气,予桑白皮、葶苈子降气止咳,且小儿生理特点为"脾常不足",故而过量进食之后,损伤脾胃,造成肺胃热盛同病,胃多气多血之腑,故予红景天、地龙、牡丹皮活血凉血清热。通过对临床医案的分析,进一步阐释从"肺胃肝三脏"治疗理论,从而为小儿咳嗽的临床诊治工作提供有益借鉴。     

疏肝健脾法治疗腹泻型肠易激综合征1例

肠易激综合征（IBS）是一种常见的功能性疾病，中医病名为"肠郁"。郭朋教授根据IBS生理、病理特点，以疏肝健脾法调和肝脾，辨证施治，取得良好疗效。文章从病因病机、辨证论治及经典案例介绍等几个方面对郭教授治疗IBS经验进行系统阐述，以期为中医药治疗IBS提供理论和方法学参考。     

低分子肝素治疗D-二聚体升高支原体肺炎的有效性分析

目的分析低分子肝素治疗D-二聚体升高支原体肺炎的有效性。方法选取我院2018年1～12月收治的64例D-二聚体升高支原体肺炎患儿作为研究对象,按照数字盲选法将其均分为两组(n=32),对照组采用常规治疗,观察组在常规治疗基础上给予低分子肝素,对比两组治疗效果。结果治疗后,观察组的血小板(PLT)、D-二聚体水平明显低于对照组(P0.05);观察组的发热时间、住院时间均短于对照组(P0.05);观察组治疗总有效率明显高于对照组(P0.05)。结论将低分子肝素应用于D-二聚体升高支原体肺炎患儿的治疗中,可有效改善患儿体内的凝血系统功能,缩短病情恢复时间,提高治疗效果,促进其病情恢复。     

脉络学说营卫理论指导心律失常辨证论治

经脉包括经(气)络和血(脉)络,清代周学海《读医随笔》将气络末端称为"气之细络",脉络末端称为"血之细络"。心之气络涵盖心脏起搏与传导系统等广泛调控机制,心之脉络涵盖冠状动脉循环系统,心之气络与脉络相互协调,营卫相偕而行,共同维持心脏正常功能。各种致病因素导致营卫异常而发为心律失常,基于脉络学说营卫理论"损其心者,调其营卫"(《难经·十四难》)治疗原则指导心律失常辨证论治,同时充分结合现代致病因素和致病特点,分别选用调节卫气营血之方药,标本兼治,以期为临床诊疗提供有益借鉴。