It is imperative that health professionals caring for patients with rheumatic diseases understand how to correctly interpret evidence in their field, taking into account the merits and shortcomings of available data. "Understanding Evidence-Based Rheumatology"offers a practical assessment of criteria, drugs, trials, and registries and provides useful tools for successfully interpreting this data. The book introduces readers to basic analysis of trial design, statistics and application of data through no-nonsense, easy-to-follow insights. Using numerous examples, chapters outline the difficulties physicians encounter when measuring disease activity in rheumatology and offer strategies for systematically approaching these situations. Ethical issues in study design and reporting are examined and the book closes with a summary of future directions for scientific and clinical studies in rheumatology.

"Understanding Evidence-Based Rheumatology"is an invaluable resource for trainees, clinicians and scientists, preparing them with the necessary tools to correctly gather evidence and shed light on the difficult practice of rheumatology."

Behcet s Syndrome has seen great strides over the last two decades in the availability of new treatments and the understanding of underlying pathogenesis. Only 30 years ago the majority of particularly young men with Behcet s lost total eye sight, now only a minority do. This book covers the most recent developments in the basic and clinical aspects of Behcet s Syndrome. International authorities have collaborated to offer their diverse expert knowledge on the multiple affected organs and systems, including the skin, the eye, the brain, the lungs and not the least the gastrointestinal and the locomotor systems. A special chapter is devoted to juvenile disease. The definitive resource on Behcet s Syndrome, this book is well suited for rheumatologists, dermatologists, ophthalmologists, neurologists, and health professionals caring for Behcet s patients."

It is imperative that health professionals caring for patients with rheumatic diseases understand how to correctly interpret evidence in their field, taking into account the merits and shortcomings of available data. Understanding Evidence-Based Rheumatology offers a practical assessment of criteria, drugs, trials, and registries and provides useful tools for successfully interpreting this data. The book introduces readers to basic analysis of trial design, statistics and application of data through no-nonsense, easy-to-follow insights. Using numerous examples, chapters outline the difficulties physicians encounter when measuring disease activity in rheumatology and offer strategies for systematically approaching these situations. Ethical issues in study design and reporting are examined and the book closes with a summary of future directions for scientific and clinical studies in rheumatology. Understanding Evidence-Based Rheumatology is an invaluable resource for trainees, clinicians and scientists, preparing them with the necessary tools to correctly gather evidence and shed light on the difficult practice of rheumatology.

This issue of the Rheumatic Disease Clinics of North America brings the rheumatologist up to date on the latest practices in quantitative assessment of common musculoskeletal conditions. Topics covered include quantitative measures of rheumatic diseases for clinical research versus standard clinical care; monitoring outcomes of arthritis and longitudinal data collection in routine care using a patient questionnaire; electronic and computer-generated patient questionnaires; integrating patient questionnaire data into electronic medical records; the SDI and CDAI; using SPERA for efficient capture of essential data from patients and health professionals; MDHAQ and RAPID scores; a proposed continuous quality improvement approach to assessment and management of patients with rheumatoid arthritis; and DAS28.

Behcet's Syndrome has seen great strides over the last two decades in the availability of new treatments and the understanding of underlying pathogenesis. Only 30 years ago the majority of particularly young men with Behcet's lost total eye sight, now only a minority do. This book covers the most recent developments in the basic and clinical aspects of Behcet's Syndrome. International authorities have collaborated to offer their diverse expert knowledge on the multiple affected organs and systems, including the skin, the eye, the brain, the lungs and not the least the gastrointestinal and the locomotor systems. A special chapter is devoted to juvenile disease. The definitive resource on Behcet's Syndrome, this book is well suited for rheumatologists, dermatologists, ophthalmologists, neurologists, and health professionals caring for Behcet's patients.