Measuring rheumatoid disease activity Archives | Rheumatoid Arthritis Warrior

Measuring rheumatoid disease activity

Why Rheumatoid Arthritis Frailty Matters

Why Rheumatoid Arthritis Frailty Matters

Kelly Young 9 Comments ,
What is rheumatoid arthritis frailty? The word frailty suggests a serious level of health vulnerability. In medical terms, frailty often describes a range of conditions in elderly people: “frailty comprises a collection of biomedical factors which influences an individual's physiological state in a way that reduces his or her capacity to withstand environmental stresses.”1 Frailty expresses...Continue reading      9 Comments » Read more
5 Rheumatoid Arthritis - RA Flare Facts

5 Rheumatoid Arthritis – RA Flare Facts

Kelly Young 88 Comments , ,
RA Flare – fact or fiction? If you want to laugh out loud, just Google RA Flare. No, not right now. Finish this first. Anyway, the topic of RA flare produces some very silly and contradictory discussions. For example Web MD offers How to Prevent Rheumatoid Arthritis Flares. If only. So today we approach one of the most...Continue reading      88 Comments » Read more
Rheumatoid Arthritis Progression Tool

Rheumatoid Arthritis Progression

Kelly Young 6 Comments ,
The paradox of Rheumatoid Arthritis progression The term rheumatoid arthritis progression requires some explanation. Progress is the opposite of what we observe when rheumatoid disease evolves. It is the disease that progresses, not the patient. So the advancement of the disease actually leads to the worsening of the patient’s health. The other obvious problem with the term...Continue reading      6 Comments » Read more
Rheumatoid disease / rheumatoid arthritis pain

Rheumatoid Arthritis Pain Persists

Kelly Young 4 Comments , ,
This is Part 3 of a series on Rheumatoid Disease / Rheumatoid Arthritis pain. In Part 1 we looked at the role of pain in the disease. Part 2 examines a popular study on Remaining Pain and poses 12 reasons that current explanations for Remaining Pain are wrong. In Part 3, we’ll see that the...Continue reading      4 Comments » Read more

Could Ultrasound Prevent Rheumatology Patients from Receiving Disease Treatments?

Kelly Young 12 Comments , ,
This is the 10th in a series on musculoskeletal ultrasound use in people living with Rheumatoid Disease (PRD). This is a critical topic for PRD that could have enormous impact on clinical care – positively or negatively – in light of results from two recent studies. Musculoskeletal ultrasound can help “see” invisible disease activity Musculoskeletal ultrasound (MSUS)...Continue reading      12 Comments » Read more

Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) Treat to Target

Kelly Young 2 Comments , ,
The treat to target (T2T) approach involves defining a treatment goal or “target” and modifying the therapy if the target is not reached. Treating to a target of remission or low disease activity Treat to target (T2T) is an approach to treating Rheumatoid Arthritis / Rheumatoid Disease (RD) that combines aggressive or intensive treatment with disease modifying...Continue reading      2 Comments » Read more

Seronegative Rheumatoid Arthritis

Kelly Young 43 Comments ,
Seronegative Rheumatoid Arthritis Diagnosis A letter from a reader asks RAW about content directly addressing seronegative Rheumatoid Arthritis. Whether or not you’re a patient with negative lab results, it is important to grasp why there is not a separate category on RAW for seronegative RA. "My reason for writing is that I don't see a great deal...Continue reading      43 Comments » Read more

Forefeet and the DAS28: a Healthy Dose of Skepticism

Kelly Young 29 Comments ,
Study concludes forefoot (toe) joints unnecessary to determine disease activity. “Forefoot joints were frequently affected on an individual level, but did not significantly improve the measurement range or precision of 28-joint counts in patients with early RA. From a measurement perspective, reduced joint counts are appropriate for use on a population level. The contribution of assessing...Continue reading      29 Comments » Read more

Where the Rubber Meets the Road or What If Only the Cancer in Dave’s Kidneys Was Treated?

Kelly Young 21 Comments , ,
Measuring disease activity: where rubber meets the road Recently a rheumatologist friend told me of needing to prove ACR20 (a measure of 20 percent improvement) in order for a patient to continue receiving a biologic treatment. I don’t know whether it was private or government insurance, but something bothered me about it. Of course, 20 percent improvement...Continue reading      21 Comments » Read more

Ultrasound for Seeing Invisible Inflammation in Rheumatoid Patients

Kelly Young 21 Comments , ,
I was a bit surprised at the tremendous response to my last post on trying to take the gloves off to talk about some typical things experienced with Rheumatoid disease. Several important conversations arose on the comments page. I always say the comments on this site are another whole blog. I’m blessed with such compassionate...Continue reading      21 Comments » Read more

Disparity Between Rheumatoid Arthritis Patients & Doctors over Disease Activity

Kelly Young 42 Comments , ,
Will one more RA disparity study make a difference for patients? Discrepancy & Rheumatoid Arthritis: inseparable as thunder & lightning Discrepancy. A word I probably used three times during the first four decades of my life. And then came Rheumatoid Disease. This word is the shortest explanation for the reason RA Warrior exists. I was stunned by the...Continue reading      42 Comments » Read more

Accurately Measuring Rheumatoid Disease Activity

Kelly Young 12 Comments ,
We may be watching the slow evolution of the ability to measure Rheumatoid disease activity (DA) which could obviously revolutionize care for the disease, if handled properly. “Visible” evidence can be a valuable tool in treating a disease that does its damage concealed inside of a body. 2006: Remission imaging study reveals Rheumatoid Arthritis disease activity Remember...Continue reading      12 Comments » Read more
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