ACR on Air

This week, we invited Dr. Paul Dellaripa to discuss why patients and providers should be concerned regarding increases in heat, pollution, and allergens and how they may negatively impact people with rheumatic diseases. We discuss how environmental factors could contribute to the development of autoimmunity in people who were otherwise previously healthy and how these factors may also cause exacerbations of a patient's underlying rheumatic disease. Most importantly, we discuss what role we can assume at home, as professionals and as educators to our patients and medical trainees. 

This week we’ve invited Dr. Lauren Henderson of Boston Children’s Hospital to discuss what Macrophage Activation Syndrome (MAS) is, how to diagnose it and which medications are used to treat it. Dr. Henderson also explains her efforts to partner with healthcare professionals in other fields (who may use a different name for MAS) seeking to understand what treatments they use when confronted with MAS and to establish a formalized process in evaluating and treating these patients together. 

Join us this week for a very special episode, that is just as much a personal story as it is an educational discussion. Dr. Jon Hausmann discusses a vasculitis disease that affects cartilage, particularly around the ears, nose, joints, eyes and throat, known as Relapsing Polychondritis (RP). Our guest, board certified in internal medicine, critical care, infectious diseases, and rheumatology, is Dr. Marcela Ferrada. Dr. Ferrada is an expert in the research, diagnosis and clinical treatment of RP and is a world-renowned leader in its subject. Dr. Ferrada also lives with the disease, as she was diagnosed with RP in 2015. Her inspiring story of hard work and dedication through adversity truly sets the stage for this educational and informative episode about a very rare disease: Relapsing Polychondritis 

Calcium Pyrophosphate Deposition (CPPD) - is one of the most common inflammatory arthritis in the world, and yet, it doesn’t receive the recognition it deserves. Our discussion today will feature everything you’ve ever wanted to know about this disease. We’ll review the basics, diagnosis through arthrocentesis and various imaging studies, creating classification criteria for CPPD, treating both the acute and chronic manifestations of CPPD as well as all the questions that remained unanswered. 

This week we discuss a pressing issue facing healthcare in the United States: The shortage of rheumatologists nationwide. With millions of American suffering from rheumatic diseases, the demand for specialized care has never been greater. Meanwhile, the supply of rheumatologists has not kept pace with this demand. Leaving many patients struggling to access the care they need. Today, we are joined by Dr. Daniel Battafarano, co-chair of the ACR Workforce Study, whose aim was to understand this very topic. We explore the root causes of this shortage, its impact on patient care and potential solutions for addressing this critical issue. 

Gout, despite being one of the most well-known and recognizable rheumatic diseases, still has large populations of people struggling with its management, as they do not receive urate-lowering treatment, even when they qualify. Of those who receive this treatment, only a small percentage reach their target urate goal. To shed some light on this, we’ve invited Dr. Nicola Dalbeth, a Specialist Rheumatologist, who leads research on the mechanisms, impact and treatment of gout. Dr. Dalbeth is also a principal investigator of trials for novel therapeutic agents and treatment strategies in gout and in 2020, was also a member of the core oversight committee for the ACR Gout Management Guidelines. We discuss treatment efficacy, the disparities, myths and barriers to them, diagnosis, and strategies regarding management of gout. 

Founder of Attune Health and Associate Clinical Professor of Medicine at The David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Dr. Swamy Venuturupalli is our guest today! We discuss innovative tech solutions designed to keep you, the clinician, working smarter, not harder. Dr. Venuturupalli explains some of his favorite tech adoptions in his practice, such as use of VR, AI, social media, and other software designed to increase efficiency and productivity in a field desperately searching for more hands to heal and assist an ever-growing patient load. 

“Rheumatology For All” is an organization with a global mission: To increase access to rheumatology care in under-resourced regions. They aim to create self-sustaining rheumatology training programs by funding the education of local physicians to become rheumatologists and provide educational programs for local physicians. Much of the organization’s work is done in developing nations throughout Africa. Today, we have founding member and member of the board of directors, Dr. Michele Meltzer as our guest, to discuss their mission, how it began, where “Rheumatology For All” is going, and how you can get involved in the great need to expand rheumatic care to these under-served countries. 

This week we discuss what a biosimilar is, why they’re causing such controversy and why they’ve taken seven years, since the FDA approved Amgevita, to come to market. We review the evidence behind the safety and efficacy of these drugs, the data from switching from a bio-originator to a biosimilar, and how the approval of the drugs may lower the health care costs and improve access to these medications. 

This week, we have the distinct privilege to interview Dr. Dan Kaster, “The Father of Autio inflammatory Diseases”. His discoveries have taught us a great deal about how the immune system works, both in health and disease. His work has contributed to finding effective treatments for conditions that previously caused significant suffering and early death. Discussions around the many autoinflammatory diseases for which he is famous are had in this episode, but we dive deeper, asking about the keys to his success as an investigator as well. Dr. Kastner shares with us formative experiences as a medical student, skills he’s acquired solving the myriad of challenges he’s faced and the global collaborations he’s forged over his long and legendary career.