Rheumatology
- All sulfa drugs are not created equal
Misinformation about “sulfa allergy” can result in unnecessary avoidance of useful medications and the prescription of less effective alternatives.
- Sarcoidosis with diffuse purplish erythematous plaques on the hands
A 70-year-old woman presented in winter with a 1-month history of asymptomatic redness of the hands.
- Can my patient with a ‘sulfa allergy’ receive celecoxib or other nonantimicrobial sulfonamides?
There is no cross-reactivity between antimicrobial and nonantimicrobial sulfonamides, and patients with a history of immunoglobulin E–mediated reaction to a sulfonamide antibiotic can receive nonantimicrobial sulfonamides.
- The causes of vascular insufficiency and Hickam vs Ockham
Is our reflexive search for a single explanatory diagnosis always reasonable and warranted—or is it truly “just” an academic intellectual exercise?
- A 74-year-old woman with purple toes
While the patient was undergoing treatment for livedoid vasculopathy, her toes started to become purple and she experienced persistent “stinging” pain in her feet.
- Salt-and-pepper skin pigmentation
Dermoscopy of the skin lesions revealed homogeneous depigmented areas with perifollicular pigmentation.
Incidentally detected noninfectious thoracic aortitis: A clinical approachThe author reviews how aortitis is detected, its many possible causes, and the workup and treatment of patients who are found to have it.
- Sorting out aortic aneurysms: A team enterprise
Aortic aneurysms present considerable diagnostic and treatment challenges owing to their diverse causes, incomplete understanding of pathogenesis, and variations in presentation and disease course.
- Preventing herpes zoster in immunocompromised patients: Current concepts
The authors review clinical aspects of herpes zoster vaccination, including identifying at-risk patients, weighing the risks and benefits of the recombinant zoster vaccine, and using best practices for administering the vaccine.
- Pursuing the diagnosis of low back pain
The recommended conservative approach eschewing initial imaging in patients with acute or subacute low back pain is unlikely to miss a significant clinical problem in those with no “red flags,” though the evaluation should be tempered in patients with chronic low back pain.