Two new composite measures to assess disease activity in PsA have been developed. Further testing in other datasets, including comparison with existing measures, is required to validate these instruments.

The picture of musculoskeletal US in SLE depends on arthropathy subtype and disease activity. US examination could be a valid and reliable tool to monitor musculoskeletal features and therapeutic outcomes in SLE patients.

PGA assessed by means of VAS is a reliable tool related to joint and skin disease activity. Because joint and skin disease often diverge it is suggested that in some circumstances both PJA and PSA are also assessed.

This paper concerns minimization and maximization of the first eigenvalue in problems involving the p-Laplacian, under homogeneous Dirichlet boundary conditions. Physically, in the case of N = 2 and p close to 2, our equation models the vibration of a nonhomogeneous membrane Ω which is fixed along the boundary. Given several materials (with different densities) of total extension |Ω|, we investigate the location of these material inside Ω so as to minimize or maximize the first mode in the vibration of the membrane.

Objective. To identify the clinical features that can help to distinguish between psoriatic arthritis (PsA) and fibromyalgia (FM). Methods. Our cross-sectional study was carried out in 10 Italian rheumatology centers between January and September 2009, and enrolled all consecutive patients with PsA and FM who agreed to participate. Standard clinical and laboratory data for PsA and FM were collected from all patients. Records were made of somatic symptoms, response to nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs (NSAID), self-evaluated pain, general health, disability, and responses to the Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire. Data were statistically analyzed by univariate and multivariate analyses, and receiver-operating characteristic curves. The analysis concentrated on the clinical features shared by the 2 conditions. Results. Two hundred sixty-six patients with PsA (mean age 51.7 yrs; disease duration 10.2 yrs) and 120 patients with FM (mean age 50.2 yrs; disease duration 5.6 yrs) were evaluated. Univariate analysis showed that patients with FM had higher mean tender point and enthesitis scores, more somatic symptoms, and responded less to NSAID. Multivariate analysis showed that the presence of 6 FM-associated symptoms and 8 tender points was the best predictor of FM. Conclusion. The shared clinical features of PsA and FM that had the greatest discriminating power for FM were the number of FM-associated symptoms and tender point count. (First Release Jan 15 2012; J Rheumatol 2012;39:849-55; doi:10.3899/jrheum.110893