Seer, forecaster, prophet, geomancer, or tout - all predict future events as physicians must. The medical activity is prognosis from the Greek pro (forward) and gnosis (special knowledgeL thus foreknowledge, and the practitioner is the prognosticator, a sobriquet which falls unhappily upon the ear. Like it or not, there is nothing more critical in the management of chronic rheumatic conditions than a reasonably clear picture of what time and disease will bring. The knowledge is so much a part of ordinary medical thinking that we rarely grace it with the label prognosis. But, like so much of "ordinary medical thinking" (an oxymoron, perhaps), quantitative data are very thin and the chestnuts of personal observation and authority figure assertion loom large. Unlike several books I have seen or written, this one on prognosis needs no justification. The entirety of a person's life contributes to and confounds what the future holds. The ingredients include education levet income, support structures such as family, housing, occupation, availability of medical services, diagnosis, treatment, rate of disease progression, age, gender, race, marital status, and others too numerous to mention or too arcane to be recognized. One would think the task of estimating prognosis impossible. And yet there is light on the horizon -we do know a few things such as the effect of high rheumatoid factor titers on the prognosis of RA or the likely outcome of certain kidney lesions in SLE.

Paediatric Rheumatology is an indispensible resource for the identification and management of specific rheumatological disorders. As well as covering common and rare rheumatological problems, there are also chapters on investigations and emergencies, designed for quick reference. The handbook includes dedicated topics on systemic diseases affecting rheumatology; the relevant clinical guidelines and information needed for a rheumatologist to successfully management a young patient; and, a coloured section for guidance on rash-related investigations. Paediatric Rheumatology is also fully endorsed by the British Society for Paediatric and Adolescent Rheumatology and the UK Paediatric Rheumatology Clinical Studies Group.

Michael H. Weisman, Michael Weinblatt, James S Louie, and Ronald Van Vollenhoven offer their unique insights into choosing the correct pharmacological and non-pharmacological therapies for your patients. Chapters cover the full breadth of rheumatic diseases, rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, connective tissue diseases, osteoporosis, regional pain disorders, and fibromyalgia. The full-color design presents detailed clinical photographs and treatment algorithms for visual guidance and easy reference. Covers the treatment of pediatric patients as well as adults so that you can properly address the particular needs of any patient you see. Features the guidance and specific recommendations of experts from United States and Europe for a state-of-the-art approach to the variety of treatments currently in use. Displays the clinical manifestations of rheumatic diseases in full color, along with treatment algorithms for easy at-a-glance reference.

Thoroughly revised and updated, this New Edition contains brand new information on diagnosis as well as a full range of management options in adults and children. Includes new chapters on rheumatoid arthritis * 19 new chapters on the management of rheumatic conditions * discussions of rheumatic conditions associated with pregnancy * updated drug information * new color illustrations * and much more!

Diagnosis and Treatment in Rheumatology is a clear and concise handbook of all rheumatic diseases. The book presents organized information about current diagnosis, treatment and statistics (where available) of diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, spndyloarthropathies, gout, systemic lupus erythromatosis, osteoarthritis, myositis and much more. This reader friendly format and up to date information is easily accessible for rheumatology residents and medical students, making the book an ideal reference for study and practice.

This book provides a practical guide to the diagnosis and management of rheumatic disease in geriatric patients. It details information on the effect of ageing on musculoskeletal and immune systems and specifies impact of a variety of inflammatory and degenerative rheumatic disorders on the elderly. The clinical diagnostic approach to an older individual with musculoskeletal complaints is a cornerstone of this book, which includes also insights into the most important comorbidities for this age and discusses in depth available treatments and rehabilitation tools. The symptoms, imaging features and recommendations on the interpretation of specific laboratory tests for rheumatic diseases in geriatrics are also covered. This book encompasses traditionally associated with older age conditions including temporal arteritis, polymyalgia rheumatica, osteoarthritis, as well as common systemic autoimmune diseases that can produce atypical manifestations in the elderly. It will enable the readers to develop a thorough understanding of how to deal with these patients in their clinical practice. Rheumatic Disease in Geriatrics: Diagnosis and Management systematically describes how to diagnose and treat geriatric patients with a variety of rheumatic conditions and is a valuable resource for all medical professionals involved.

This Open Access book presents practical approaches to managing patients affected by various rheumatological diseases, allowing readers to gain a better understanding of the various clinical expressions and problems experienced by these patients. Discussing rheumatology from an organ systems perspective, it highlights the importance ofdetailed musculoskeletal examinations when treating patients affected by rheumatological diseases. The book first explores the latest diagnostic approaches and offers key tips for accurate musculoskeletal examinations before addressing the various treatment modalities, with a particular focus on the most common joints involved in rheumatoid arthritis: the wrists and the metacarpophalangeal joints (2nd and 3rd). Featuring easy-to-understand flow diagrams and explaining the common medical problems associated with rheumatic disease, such as shortness of breath and anemia, it is not only a valuable resource to rheumatologists, but will also appeal to medical students, junior residents, and primary healthcare physicians.

For eight decades the Primer on the Rheumatic Diseases has been the standard text from which most medical students and house ofcers have learned rheumatology. I myself will never forget thumbing through an older edition of the Primer as a second-year resident, while waiting to review a perplexing patient with my tutor. Fortunately the tutor was r- ning late with his own patients, so I had time to fip through the book – then much thinner – a couple of times. While turning the pages, per- ing the features of those diseases whose names were still exotic to me, and considering my patient’s history of conductive hearing loss and p- monary nodules, a light went on when I stumbled eventually on a part- ular chapter. I still remember the jaw-dropping efect on my tutor of my announcement then that I had a patient with Wegener’s granulomatosis. I think I became a rheumatologist that very moment! Subsequent editions of the Primer have sufered from the inevitable “obesity creep,” making it an outstanding reference textbook but virtually impossible to fip through quickly while awaiting one’s tutor, and even more difcult to slip into the pocket of a white coat to carry on rounds. For this reason we have created the Pocket Primer, a mini version that cuts the larger book down to its essentials.

"Rheumatic Disease" is the second monograph in a new series on management and treatment in major clinical subspecialties and patient groups. Further volumes will be published over the next few years. Each book is complete in its own right. The whole series, however, has been prepared to fill a gap, perceived by the publisher, myself and the volume authors, between standard text books of medicine and therapeutics and research reviews, sympo sia' and original articles in specialist fields. Each volume aims to provide a concise, up to date account of treatment in its subject area with particular reference to drug therapy. Wherever pos sible, authorship has been undertaken by practising clinicians who themselves have training and experience in clinical pharma cology. The volumes are intended to be guides to treatment, to assist in the choice of drug and other treatment and to provide easy references to drug interactions and adverse reactions. The aims of the series should be upheld by this volume on "Rheumatic Disease". The book has been prepared in Glasgow and Newcastle. The authors, Drs. Hilary Capell, Terry Daymond and Carson Dick, are not only respected clinicians and rheumato logists but have wide clinical and research experience in the clinical pharmacology of antirheumatic drugs and therapeutic management of connective tissue disease and other areas of rheumatology. This volume combines practical pragmatic man agement with new concepts in drug treatment.