2010 | Page 20 of 28 | Rheumatoid Arthritis Warrior

Bewilderment of Early Aggressive Treatment of Rheumatoid Arthritis

April 20, 2010May 15, 2018 Kelly O'Neill 51 Comments Communicating about RA, History of Rheumatoid Arthritis

Article assures Rheumatoid Arthritis patients of success of early aggressive treatment For your reading pleasure, I’ve typed up some excerpts from a pdf of the Sarasota Journal February 27 article called “Rheumatoid Arthritis Doesn’t Need to Cripple.” This article had an effect on me. You will see why in a moment. “Most people with Rheumatoid Arthritis...Continue reading 51 Comments » Read more

The History of Cortisone and Rheumatoid Arthritis

Memory lane with Mayo and cortisone history History comes to life with Popular Science magazine’s historical issues. They are conveniently scanned into an archive viewer online. The screen shot here shows part of a graphic from a June 1951 issue. The article describes theories of why cortisone was so successful in treating Rheumatoid Arthritis. Looks like...Continue reading 16 Comments » Read more

Would Relying on Patient Generated Data Make a Difference?

April 16, 2010May 15, 2018 Kelly O'Neill 10 Comments Patient reported outcome measure, Physician-patient discordance / disagreement, Talking to doctors

Discrepancy between patient generated data and clinician reported data Recently on the blog, I mentioned an oft-quoted study which suggests that the disease course for Rheumatoid Arthritis is becoming milder. Something puzzled me at the end of the report. The researchers noticed that Rheumatoid Arthritis patients’ ratings of their disease activity were opposite to that of...Continue reading 10 Comments » Read more

How Much Does Patient Testimony Matter?

April 15, 2010May 15, 2018 Kelly O'Neill 19 Comments Parvovirus and Rheumatoid arthritis, Patient reported outcome measure, Talking to doctors

A story about patient testimony In this blog, I’m going do something I don’t often do: use personal patient testimony to illustrate a point. Today, I took my teenage son to a new ear, nose, and throat (ENT) doctor. My son’s ENT history was interesting to the doctor. Reliving the story today was poignant. As an infant, my...Continue reading 19 Comments » Read more

What if Rheumatoid Arthritis Patients Wrote a Dear Doctor Letter?

April 13, 2010May 15, 2018 Kelly O'Neill 32 Comments e-patient, Humor with RA, Talking to doctors

Silly Fantasy for Rheumatoid Arthritis Patients What if we could say whatever we think to a doctor? Sometimes, I imagine what it would be like to write the doctor a letter. Here is my imaginary letter. Some Rheumatoid Arthritis Patient Secrets Dear Doctor, Well, I’ve been looking forward to our appointment next week. It’s been several months. I hope...Continue reading 32 Comments » Read more

Is the Course of Disease for Rheumatoid Arthritis Becoming Milder?

April 12, 2010May 15, 2018 Kelly O'Neill 13 Comments Research on Rheumatoid Arthritis, Rheumatoid arthritis treatment

Has aggressive treatment changed the course of Rheumatoid Arthritis? A study in the Netherlands reported in 2005 has been quoted dozens of times as evidence that the course of Rheumatoid Arthritis is improving with better medical treatment. About 525 patients were followed. Researchers considered ESR (erythrocyte sedimentation rate), Rheumatoid factor, and joint counts. They suggest that aggressive...Continue reading 13 Comments » Read more

Unsolicited Medical Advice: Rheumatoid Arthritis and Chronic Illness

April 9, 2010May 15, 2018 Kelly O'Neill 57 Comments Living with chronic illness like RA, Rheumatoid Arthritis awareness

Advice column takes on unsolicited medical advice This article appeared in a nationally syndicated column the other day. There were squeals of laughter in my house when it was discovered by one of my kids. It’s so absurd it’s funny. Let me get this straight. A woman wrote to a national columnist complaining that her friend does...Continue reading 57 Comments » Read more