Objective: To investigate the occurrence of cardiovascular events (CVEs) in a large cohort of patients with antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibody (ANCA)-associated vasculitis (AAV) across the European Union, China, Turkey, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the USA.Methods: Patients with a definite diagnosis of AAV who were followed for ≥ 3 months and had sufficient documentation were included. Data on myocardial infarction (MI) and stroke were collected retrospectively from tertiary vasculitis centers. Univariate and multivariate Cox regression models were used to estimate hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% CIs.Results: Over a median follow-up of 62.0 months (IQR 22.6-100.0), CVEs (mostly MIs) occurred in 245 (10.7%) of 2286 patients with AAV, with a higher frequency in China and the UK. On multivariate regression analysis, older age (55-64.9 yrs, HR 2.93, 95% CI 1.99-4.31), smoking (HR 1.98, 95% CI 1.48-2.64), Chinese origin (HR 4.24, 95% CI 3.07-5.85), and pulmonary (HR 1.50, 95% CI 1.09-2.06) and kidney (HR 3.02, 95% CI 2.08-4.37) involvement were independent variables associated with a higher occurrence of CVEs.Conclusion: We showed that geographic region and both traditional and disease-specific (kidney involvement in particular) factors were independently associated with CVEs. Proper assessment and management of modifiable cardiovascular (CV) risk factors are essential for prevention of CV morbidity in patients with AAV.

Objectives: We aimed to explore the radiographic definitions of types of New Bone formation (NBF) by focusing on the terminology, description and location of the findings. Methods: Three systematic literature reviews were conducted in parallel to identify the radiographic spinal NBF definitions for spondyloarthritis (SpA), Diffuse Idiopathic Skeletal Hyperostosis (DISH) and Osteorathritis (OA). Study characteristics and definitions were extracted independently by two reviewers. Definitions were analysed and collated based on whether they were unique, modified or established from previous research. Results: We identified 33 studies that indicated a definition for the NBF in SpA, 10 for DISH and 7 for spinal OA. In SpA, the variations in syndesmophytes included the description as well as the subtypes and locations. The differentiation of syndesmophytes from osteophytes were included in 12 articles, based on the origin and the angle of the NBF and associated findings. The definitions of DISH varied in the number of vertebrae, level and laterality. For OA, five articles indicated that osteophytes arose from the anterior or lateral aspects of the vertebral bodies, and two studies required a size cut-off. Discussion: Our ultimate aim is to create formal NBF definitions for SpA, DISH and OA guided by an atlas, through a Delphi exercise with international experts. The improved ability to differentiate these conditions radiographically will not only allow the clinicians to accurately approach patients but also will help the researchers to better classify patient phenotypes and focus on accurate radiographic outcomes.

Objective: This study aimed to assess the current state of musculoskeletal point-of-care ultrasonography training among the rheumatology postgraduate programs in Canada and explored the interest in developing a national curriculum. Method: A Canadian survey was developed by academic rheumatologists including point-of-care ultrasonography experts and point-of-care ultrasonography non-users. Across Canada, all 15 adult and 3 pediatric rheumatology English and French postgraduate programs were surveyed via Survey Monkey with a standardized questionnaire. Results: The completed response rates were 27% (24/89) for postgraduate year-4 and -5 rheumatology trainees and 61% (11/18) for program directors. Forty-two percent (10/24) of trainees had access to formal point-of-care ultrasonography training, and 67% (16/24) had some form of informal nonstructured exposure. Of all respondents, 87.5% (21/24) trainees and 82% (9/11) program directors agreed or strongly agreed that point-of-care ultrasonography is an important clinical tool in rheumatology. Eighty-nine percent (8/9) of program directors felt that point-of-care ultrasonography should be a formal part of rheumatology training. Conclusion: This national survey demonstrates that while musculoskeletal point-of-care ultrasonography is considered an important component of clinical practice, significant training barriers exist. The majority of both trainees and program directors felt that point-of-care ultrasonography should be a formal part of training and would be interested in a national standardized point-of-care ultrasonography curriculum in Canada. Cite this article as: Tana T, Al Osaimi N, Gazel U, Roth J, Zehra Aydin S, Humphrey-Murto S. Musculoskeletal point-of-care ultrasonography training among canadian postgraduate rheumatology programs. Eur J Rheumatol. 2023;10(1):8–11.

Tumor necrosis factor-alfa (TNF-?) antagonists are extensively utilized in the treatment of inflammatory rheumatic diseases and also shown to be effective in Behcet?s disease (BD) patients with major organ involvement. In this study, we aimed to re-evaluate the incidence of tuberculosis (TB) infection after anti-TNF? treatments and to reveal the risk of TB in BD. Data of patients who received anti-TNF? treatment between 2005 and 2018 were assessed retrospectively. Demographic features, TNF-? antagonist type/treatment time, Tuberculosis skin test (TST) and QuantiFERON results, isoniazid prophylaxis status, and concomitant corticosteroid (CS) treatments were collected. A total of 1277 (male/female = 597/680; median age = 49 years) patients were treated with TNF-? antagonist for a median of 33 months (Q1:12, Q3:62). Thirteen (1%) patients developed TB during the follow-up period. Within 13 TB-positive patients, 7 of them had pulmonary, and 7 had extrapulmonary TB. Although, the median time of (month) TNF-? antagonist treatment was higher in TB-positive patients than negative ones, the difference was not statistically significant (48 and 33 months, respectively, p=0.47). Similarly, TB-positive patients were treated with CSs more than TB-negative patients (80% vs. 60%). Time from the initiation of TNF-? antagonist treatment to the diagnosis of TB had a median of 40 months (Q1-Q3: 22-56). There was a statistically significant increase of TB development in BD patients than non-BD patients after TNF-? antagonists (7.5% vs. 0.8%, respectively, p=0.007). When we combined our patients with the other series from Turkey, among 12928 patients who received TNF-? antagonists, TB was positive in 12 (3,9%) of 305 BD patients compared to 112 (0.9%) of 12623 non-BD patients (p<0.00001). Our results suggest a higher frequency of TB infections in BD patients with TNF-? antagonists. As biologic agents are increasingly used for major organ involvement in current practice for BD, screening mechanisms should be carefully implemented.

Objectives: There is no consensus on how musculoskeletal ultrasound (US), especially power Doppler (PD) positivity, should inform treatment decisions in RA. We aimed to summarize the literature on whether PD positivity can predict response to intensification of RA therapies in patients with moderate to high clinical disease activity. Methods: A systematic literature review was performed using a predefined PICO strategy. The titles and abstracts, and subsequently full texts, were independently screened and reviewed by two reviewers and any disagreement was resolved by a third investigator. Studies that investigated the predictive value of PD were included. Results: Among 2580 abstracts/titles, 13 studies were included. Studies were heterogeneous regarding the inclusion criteria, baseline and new treatments, scanned joints and follow-up duration. In eight studies, patients with higher baseline PD activity had a better response to treatment, mostly with higher reductions in clinical indices. In contrast, two studies found that the probability of achieving clinical remission decreased as the baseline PD score increased. There was no association between baseline PD and the achievement of clinical remission at the follow-up in the remaining three studies. Conclusion: The baseline Doppler severity may suggest better improvement with higher reductions in composite scores, but this may not be enough to predict a remission state. How US can be used to predict response in RA management requires a well-designed study that will need to be shaped by the existing observations, most importantly identifying the outcome measure that will also be important for daily practice.