Declining rates of orthopaedic surgery among patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) over the past 30 years suggest that advances in treatment are slowing progress of the disease, according to a study published online January 15 in The Journal of Rheumatology. Courtney A. Shourt, MD, from the Department of Medicine at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, and colleagues conducted a retrospective medical record review of all orthopaedic surgeries in 813 cases of adult-onset RA in Olmsted County, Minnesota, between 1980 and 2007

Medscape Today, by Martha Kerr, 01/27/2012

Tags: Courtney A. Shourt, Department of Medicine, Mayo Clinic Rochester, orthopaedic surgery, Orthopedics, Research, Rheumatology, The Journal of Rheumatology