Introduction Assessment of risk both for pregnancy morbidity and thrombosis in the presence of anti-phospholipid antibodies (aPL) is still a challenge in Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) patients. The Global Antiphospholipid Syndrome Score (GAPSS) takes into account the aPL profile (criteria and non-criteria aPL), the conventional cardiovascular risk factors and the autoimmune antibody profile. An adjusted model of the score (aGAPSS) excluding anti-phosphatidylserine/Prothrombin (aPS/PT), suggests that the score is able to stratify patients for their rate of events making it widely applicable in daily clinical practice. Objective To validate the aGAPSS in a multicentric cohort of SLE patients in Argentina. Patients and methods consecutive SLE patients with and without thrombotic events from seven Rheumatologist centers were included. Traditional cardiovascular risk factors, aPL antibodies and medications received (aspirin, hydroxychloroquine and anticoagulation) were collected. The score aGAPSS was calculated for each patient at the last visit by adding together the points corresponding to the risk factors: 1 for hypertension, 3 for dyslipidemia, 4 for LA and B2GPI (IgM or IgG) antibodies and 5 for aCL (IgM or IgG) antibodies. The discriminative ability of the aGAPSS was calculated by measuring the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC). Multivariate logistic regression analysis was performed to examine the impact of multiple cardiovascular risk factors and laboratory parameters on the occurrence of thrombosis. Results Two hundred and ninety-six SLE patients were included. One-hundred and twenty-one patients (40.9%) presented thrombotic and/or pregnancy complications. Median aGAPSS was significantly higher in patients who experienced an event (thrombosis and/or pregnancy morbidity) compared with those without [4 (IQR 1–9) versus 1 (IQR 0–5); p < 0.001]. The best cut off point for the diagnosis of thrombosis and/or pregnancy complications was aGAPSS ≥4. Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that aCL antibodies [OR 2.1 (95% CI 1.16–3.90); p = 0.015] were an independent risk factors for thrombotic events. Conclusions This score is a simple tool, easy to apply to SLE patients in daily practice. The use of the aGAPSS could change the non-pharmacologic and pharmacologic treatment in higher risk patients to improve their survival.

Background/Objective: Psoriatic arthritis (PsA) is preceded by psoriasis in approximately 80% of cases. Dermatologists are pivotal for early detection. It is important to have simple tools that allow the detection of PsA in patients with skin psoriasis. The aim of our study was to evaluate the performance of an adapted version of the GEPARD Questionnaire in Spanish in Argentinian patients with psoriasis. Methods: This is a cross-sectional study. A new Spanish (Argentinian) (GEPARDa) translated version of the original questionnaire (German) was developed and then tested as a diagnostic tool in patients with psoriasis, PsA, osteoarthritis associated to psoriasis, and osteoarthritis, all evaluated by rheumatologists who used the CASPAR criteria. Results: Eighty-three patients were included (55 [66.3%] women with a mean age of 50.7 years [SD 6.3]). Forty-four patients had PsA (29 [34.9%] patients had previous diagnosis of PsA, and 15 [18%] were newly diagnosed after referral by their dermatologists), and 39 patients were without PsA (18 [21.6%] patients had psoriasis without articular involvement, 6 [7.22%] had psoriasis associated with osteoarthritis, and 15 [18%] had osteoarthritis). An area under the curve of 0.9554 (SD 0.01; 95% CI 0.91–0.99) was calculated considering the CASPAR criteria as the gold standard. With a cutoff of ≥6 the questionnaire showed a sensitivity of 88.64%, a specificity of 89.74%, a positive likelihood ratio of 8.6, and a negative likelihood ratio of 0.12. Conclusions: The GEPARDa version has proven to be a diagnostic tool with excellent performance so that it can be considered a valid tool for the detection of PsA in Argentinian patients.

The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of depression among rheumatoid arthritis (RA) Argentinean patients and its association with sociodemographic and clinical factors.

No abstract

The novel coronavirus SARS2-COV-2 has precipitated the present outbreak of COVID-19 and the worldwide spread has had a strong impact on the general population and on healthcare workers (1). The objective of the present study was to describe the current work conditions and the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak on Argentinian rheumatologists.

No abstract

El autocuestionario QOL-RA es una herramienta diseñada para valorar la calidad de vida de los pacientes con Artritis Reumatoidea (AR). No requiere licencia para su uso. Objetivo: validar el cuestionario QOL-RA en una cohorte de pacientes con AR en Argentina.

BackgroundThe Duruöz Hand Index (DIH) is a reliable tool for the evaluation of hand's function in patients with scleroderma.ObjectivesThe aim of our study was to adapt and to validate the DHI questionnaire in an Argentinian population with scleroderma.MethodsFor validation, 3 rheumatologists adapted and translated to Spanish the original version in French and the final version was re-translated to French by a bilingual person. To evaluate the construct validity, we used the patient global visual analogue scale (VAS), VAS for questions for the same activity, the health assessment questionnaire (HAQ) and the Rodnan. A subsample attended a second visit to evaluate reproducibility, with no modifications in the treatment in relation to the previous visit. Continuos variables were expressed as mean and standard desviation (SD) or medians with their interquartile range (IQR). Spearman's correlation coefficient was used to quantify the degree of correlation between the different VAS, HAQ and Rodnan with the total score. The intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) was used to assess reproducibility and Cronbach's alpha to evaluate internal consistency.Results45 patients diagnosed with scleroderma were included in the study. 84,44% were women, mean age of 51±13,72 years (SD), 48,89% were Mestizos, while 46,67% were Caucasians with a disease duration of 24 months (IQR: 18-60). 64, 44% patients had diagnostic of limited scleroderma; 77, 78% were right handed and 53, 33% had extra cutaneous manifestations. Raynaud was present in 93, 33%, pitting scars in 33, 33% and digital ulcers in 26, 67%. The median score of the total questionnaire was 4, 5 (IQR: 0-26), of the global VAS 49 (IQR: 10-50), of HAQ 0,3 (IQR: 0-1) and of Rodnan 5 (IQR:2-11). The correlation between the total score of DHI and the patient global VAS was 0, 58, with the HAQ was 0, 63 and with Rodnan 0, 08. The correlation coefficient between the VAS and each group of questions for the same activity in the DHI questionnaire, indicated good correlation for the questions that refer to activities of kitchen(0,60;0,71;0,67;0,67;0,59;0,62;0,55), as well as for dressing(0,69;0,65;057), for hygiene (0,61;0,56), and for the office questions (o,56;0,73). There was excellent level of correlation with those related to fine motor activities with a maximun r value of 0, 78. The reproducibility was 0, 88 (CI 95% 0,76-0,99) and the internal consistency according to Cronbach's alpha was 0,98.ConclusionsThe results from this study show the DHI to be a reliable and valid test for this Argentinian population with scleroderma.ReferencesDuruoz MT, Poiraudeau S, Fermanian J, Menkes C, Amor B, Dougados M, et al. Development and validation of a rheumatoid Duruoz's Hand Index that assesses functional handicap. J Rheumatol 1996; 23:1167–72.AcknowledgementsJanet L. Poole.Disclosure of InterestNone declared