Home Community Newsletter Vol 5 Issue 170

Arthritis Insight Newsletter * Vol. 5 Issue 170 October 29, 2003

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Welcome to the 170th issue of the Arthritis Insight Newsletter. All back issues will be posted at community/newsletter
Feel free to pass this newsletter around to others who may be interested.

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The information in this newsletter should not take the place of advice and guidance from your own health-care providers. Material in this newsletter is provided for educational and informational purposes only. Be sure to check with your doctor before making any changes in your treatment plan. Information presented here is the opinion of the authors and has not necessarily been approved or endorsed by the medical advisors.

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Notes From Tina
(Tina@arthritisinsight.com)
Tina Underwood aka KrissyJo

Tina's out today attending to some family stuff, hopefully things will settle down and she'll be back next week. Before she left tho - she gathered tons of information from this year's ACR. Check out the Feature Discussion: ACR Scientific Meeting 2003 (feature/acr2003) and get all the latest information from the meeting.

Hope everyone has a happy and safe Halloween. See ya'll next week.

- Kimmy

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Ron's Ramblin's
(Ron@arthritisinsight.com)
Ron Griffin aka IndyRon

Well, once again I realize how untalented I am. I can barely play a stereo and all of my kids are turning out to be talented musicians. I have one playing the Viola and then taking Piano lessons, one playing the violin and another the alto sax. It is tough to be the only one in the family without talent.

This has been one of those weekends. I am sure that you are all familiar with them. You know, the ones where you wake up feeling just as tired as you were when you went to bed. Where you sleep maybe an hour and then are awake for most of the rest of the night. Then, the daytime fatigue just totally washes you out and you are lucky if you can make it from one area of the house to the other. And this was with 2 kids wanting you to be doing things with them. <sigh>

The rest of the week doesnt look much better with doctor appointments, school activities and Halloween. As always, things seem to get done in spite of our ailments dont they.

~Ron

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Your Weekly Giggle
True Blonde

A young brunette goes into the doctor's office and says that her body hurts wherever she touches it.

"Impossible," says the doctor. "Show me."

She takes her finger and pushes her elbow and screams in agony. She pushes her knee and screams, pushes her ankle and screams and so it goes on, everywhere she touches makes her scream.

The doctor says, "You're not really a brunette, are you?"

She says, "No, I'm really a blonde."

"I thought so," he says. "Your finger is broken."


Check out all the jokes at:
fun/jokes
Send yours in today!

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Tina's Tips
Tina@arthritisinsight.com

Arthritis can affect your ability to do even the simplest of tasks. I've heard some people say, "Accept your limitations." I'm not sure accepting them is the way to go. I prefer to challenge those limitations, work around them, finding alternate ways of achieving the same goal. Every week I'll share some tips I've found to work around those annoying limitations and I hope all of you will send in your tips too. We may not be the next Martha Stewart, but sometimes the simplest things can help so much.

A great tip from Teresa for keeping those rice bags/socks moist!

If you spritz the rice bags with water before microwaving, you will not only have moist heat, but also will not have to worry about the rice drying out. I have my bags I made five years ago and all I've replaced is the herbals that I also use in them for aromatherapy.

Check out more tips at living/tips.html and send in yours today to Tina@arthritisinsight.com Keep those tips coming!

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Whats New

Featured Discussion
It's time for the ACR Scientific Meeting 2003. What you need to know.
feature

Member Stories
Tracey shares her story. Isn't it time for you to share too?
community/stories

Newsletter
Kimmy has put together another great issue.
community/newsletter/

News
Lottsa news to use!
news/

Question of the Week
Free gifts, love 'em or hate 'em?
community/question

Arthritis Warrior
Some new nominees! Check em out!
warrior/

Fight the Fatigue
Bev shares some fatigue fighting wisdom.
living/fatigue/

Check out all the latest updates at
updates.html

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Arthritis Insight Chat
community/chat

Time to get the party started! Got some extra time? Can't sleep? Drop into the chatroom to talk to other members that know exactly what you're going through.

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Cooking with Char
Char LeFleur
char@arthritisinsight.com

This week I got an email from a reader who says that she has a problem the with high fat content of "most" of my recipes. I wasn't aware that "most" of my recipes have been high in fat, but perhaps they have been. If so, I apologize to my readers. But it is difficult to write a column that suits everyone. I try to make all my recipe selections, easy and inexpensive and something a family would enjoy. Once in a while I try to throw in some recipes that can be made in smaller quantities for folks who live alone, or who are part of a couple without kids at home. The recipes that I put in my column are recipes that appeal to ME. Many of them are recipes that I have learned from my mother or have developed myself. This of course doesn't mean that they will appeal to most of you. This is the reason that I ask for people to share their recipes with me.

So let me say it here, instead of at the end of my column--IF YOU HAVE RECIPES THAT YOU WOULD LIKE TO SHARE, PLEASE SEND THEM TO Char@arthritisinsight.com.

This weeks recipes have been taken from a cookbook called "Cooking Healthy With Kids In Mind" by JoAnna Lund

Junior Pizza Casserole

8 oz lean ground turkey or beef
1/4 C finely chopped onion
1/4 C finely chopped green pepper
1 1/3 C (one 15 oz can) Hunts Chunky Tomato Sauce
1/4 C (3/4 oz) grated Kraft fat-free Parmesan Cheese
1 tsp. Italian or pizza seasoning
3C hot cooked noodles (rinsed and drained)
1 (3 oz) package Hormel reduced fat sliced pepperoni, chopped
1/3 C (1 1/2 oz) shredded reduced fat mozzarella cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Spray an 8X8 inch baking pan with olive oil flavored nonstick spray.
In a large skillet sprayed with the olive oil flavored spray brown meat, onion, and green pepper.
Stir in tomato sauce, parmesan cheese and pizza or Italian seasoning. Add noodles and pepperoni.
Mix well to combine.
Spread in baking pan.
Bake for 20 minutes.
Sprinkle evenly with mozzarella cheese.
Bake an additional 10 minutes.
Let dish set for 10 minutes before serving.
Makes 6 servings.

Super Special Chicken

16 ounces of skinless, boneless chicken breast cut into 4 pieces.
1/2 C Kraft fat-free French Dressing
1/4 C reduced sodium Ketchup
1 tsp chili seasoning
2 tsp dried onion flakes
1 tsp dried parsley flakes

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Spray an 8X8 baking pan with butter flavored cooking spray.
Evenly arrange chicken pieces in baking dish.
In a small bowl, combine French dressing, onion flakes, chili seasoning, ketchup, onion flakes.
Evenly spoon over chicken.
Cover and bake for 30 minutes.
Uncover and bake an additional 15 minutes.
Spoon sauce over chicken when serving.

If you have questions, comments or suggestions, or recipes you would like to share please send them to Char@arthritisinsight.com.

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From the NIH:
Gene Therapy Shows Promise in Treating Sjogrens Syndrome in an Animal Model
Interleukin-10 gene transfer inhibits salivary gland inflammation, preserves saliva flow
http://www.nih.gov/news/pr/oct2003/nidcr-21.htm


Researchers have reported the first successful use of gene therapy to limit salivary gland inflammation and preserve saliva flow in a mouse model of Sjogrens syndrome, an autoimmune disorder that can render people unable to produce saliva or tears.

The scientists found that transferring the gene for human interleukin-10 (IL-10) via an adeno-associated virus into the animals salivary glands reduced salivary gland inflammation and preserved saliva flow. The treatment worked whether it was started before or after the onset of salivary dysfunction. The scientists describe their findings in the November 20 issue of Human Gene Therapy. The journal has pre-published the paper online at http://www.liebertpub.com/specialpaper.pdf.

"We were certainly happy to find that the animals that received the experimental treatment had dramatically higher salivary function than control animals," said Dr. Bruce Baum, the studys senior author and chief of the Gene Therapy and Therapeutics Branch, National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR). "And although we have more research to do, this brings us one step closer to the possibility of salivary gland gene therapy in humans with this disorder."

Sjogrens (SHOW-grins) syndrome affects approximately 1-2 million people, mostly females, in the U.S. It is an autoimmune disorder in which immune system cells mistakenly attack the bodys moisture-producing glands, causing them to become inflamed. The disorder usually affects the salivary glands and the glands that produce tears, but can also injure other tissues and organs. It can occur by itself or with other, common autoimmune diseases like rheumatoid arthritis and lupus. There is no cure for Sjogrens syndrome at present. Treatment for the lack of saliva consists mostly of palliative measures such as sipping water, chewing sugarless gum, and using artificial saliva. There are prescription drugs that can stimulate salivary flow in patients who have some salivary gland function, but these drugs do not slow or stop disease progression. Without enough saliva, people with Sjogrens syndrome can endure considerable discomfort, and may develop rampant tooth decay, oral fungal infections, and difficulty eating and speaking.

In their study, Dr. Baum and his colleagues used the female non-obese diabetic mouse, a standard animal model of type I diabetes as well as Sjogrens syndrome. These animals typically develop salivary gland dysfunction between 8 and 12 weeks of age.

The scientists created a gene package made up of the human IL-10 gene and an adeno-associated virus vector that acted as the genes carrier into salivary gland cells. "We chose the IL-10 gene because of its well known anti-inflammatory properties and because of its reputation for inhibiting the progress of other, similar autoimmune diseases in animal models," Dr. Baum said. IL-10 is an immunomodulatory protein, or cytokine, a type of molecule made by immune system cells. Cytokines help these cells communicate with one another, thereby fine-tuning the immune response.

The researchers introduced the gene package either into the animals salivary glands through a tiny tube in their mouth, or by injection into their thigh muscle. Two groups of mice received the gene directly in their salivary glands - one group at 8 weeks of age (before the onset of salivary dysfunction) and one group at 16 weeks of age (after the onset of salivary dysfunction). Two other groups received the gene by injection into their thigh muscles at the same time intervals. There were also animals that served as controls; they were given a gene that was not biologically active.

"We found that the long-term (20 week) salivary function was about three times higher in animals that were given the gene directly in their glands when we compared them to control animals," Dr. Baum said. "And the improvement was seen whether the treatment was administered before or after the onset of salivary dysfunction." There was also some improvement of salivary flow in the mice that received the gene via intramuscular injection at the late treatment time, Dr. Baum said.

The scientists also examined the animals salivary glands for inflammation, which at 20 weeks is typically moderate to severe in untreated animals. They found much less salivary gland inflammation in the animals that received the gene directly in their glands compared to control animals, suggesting that local delivery of the gene inhibited the inflammatory process. The animals that received the gene via intramuscular injection did not show any reduction of inflammation.

"These study results are important because they show us that an immunomodulatory gene delivered locally to the salivary glands can be quite effective in limiting the functional damage that occurs in this mouse model of Sjogrens syndrome," Dr. Baum said.

Future studies will seek to understand the molecular changes that resulted in preserved salivary function. "One unexpected finding in the treated glands was increased levels of certain molecules that cause inflammation, the opposite of what we had expected," said Dr. Baum. "We dont know yet what mechanism lessened inflammation and preserved saliva flow and we need to do more research to determine that before clinical trials are considered." He also cautioned that safety and toxicology tests are necessary prior to clinical studies.

Collaborating with Dr. Baum were Drs. Marc Kok, Seichii Yamano, Beatrijs Lodde, Jianghua Wang, Antony Voutetakis, Michael Schmidt, Sandra Afione, Stanley Pillemer, Marjorie Tsutsui and John Chiorini from NIDCR; Ross Couwenhoven from the University of Maryland Dental School; Derek Leroith and Shoshana Yakar from the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Disorders; and Paul-Peter Tak from the University of Amsterdam.

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Member Stories
Tracey's Story

Hi, my name is Tracey I am 31 years old and married with 3 children. This is my story.

I was 25 years old and my son was 5 and my daughter was 2 months old. I just woke up one morning and my hand was stiff and swollen. I thought maybe a spider or something had bit me and I just Iced it. But the next morning I woke up and my other hand was the same. This was definitely a problem...

My husband brought me to the Emerg. Room. Dr. checked me out and said, "I think you have Rheumatoid Arthritis" I laughed at him, Come on, I never heard of a 25 year old having RA. At this time we were living in a small community in Newfoundland, Canada. There was a year wait to see a Rheumatologist. My family Dr. tried me on all kinds of nsaids, but nothing worked. It was hard not being able to breast feed my daughter anymore because of the drugs I was being put on. Opening jars and cooking took a lot of effort. I cried a lot. Thank God my husband was laid off for the winter months and was able to help.

About Five months later my Family Dr. called me in and said that he was talking to the Rheumatologist and he was going to prescribe me with sulfasalazine. However, he prepared me it was going to get worse before it got better. Nothing prepared me for a month of being bedridden. I was totally dependent on my husband. He was like an angel. He dressed me, and bathed me, and even had to help me during private times using the washroom, that was embarrassing at first. But I guess when you are in that much pain you just don't care.

But at last there was a light at the end of the tunnel. I went into remission. Yes, remission I enjoyed it for almost five years. It was great. But a few weeks ago it returned. I woke up at 3 a.m. In Oct. 2003 and couldn't move my shoulder. And you all know about the pain. I'm back on sulfa again and have a 2 month wait to see the RA Dr. But I'm trying to stay positive. Afterall I have 3 children now. I have a 3 year old that came along while I was in remission. I had to have a talk to my 11 year old and my 6 year old. You know explain that mommy's bones are sick. They said that it was ok, and they would help as much as they could. It took all my strength to hold back my tears.

I thank God everyday for blessing me with a great husband and 3 awesome children. I am sorry if I went on and on but it just feels so good to tell you all about my story. I guess because I know If anyone could understand its all of you that have gone through this. This is a great site, and I am soooo happy that I came across it. Take care, and I hope that everyday could be pain free for all of us that suffer with this disease.

To see the rest of stories go on over to:
community/stories

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Notes and Insights:

Birthday Board!
Happy Birthday to Julie Molli, Maureen V, Randara Kaye, Judy Dickson aka SISCOKID, Rosemary Howells, Harriette and Melissa aka Peaches!!!
Check out all the birthdays at
community/birthday
and make sure to send them an arthritis-friendly e-card:
cgi-bin/postcards/postcard.pl

Join the Arthritis Dieters!
This is a group of people with arthritis who want to lose weight with others who know of the challenges of living with is arthritis. All those medications that make living with arthritis tolerable, but pile on the pounds. This group has been set up to give us a protected group where we can talk to others who know what it is like.
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/arthritis-dieters/

Wanna help?
Having surgery? Starting a new drug or treatment? Filing for disability? Keep an Arthritis Insight journal so all of our members can share and learn from your experience. If you want to keep a journal just let us know.

Write an article!
We always need articles on all subjects relating to arthritis. C'mon folks, we can't do this without you.

Ken Akers Cheer Fund
Donations to the Ken Akers Cheer Fund will be used to send flowers and gifts to those community members who are hospitalized, flaring or just in need of some good cheer.
community/kenscheerfund

Thank You!
A great big thank you to NeedaBasket.com (http://needabasket.com). NeedaBasket is now Arthritis Insight's official gift basket company. They are giving us a great discount and are donating baskets for our Arthritis Warriors.

Special Offers for Arthritis Insight Members
Whenever possible we will try get to our sponsors to agree to discounts and the like for our members. Here are our current special offers:

Sore No More (http://sorenomore.com) gel will send a free sample of the pain relieving gel to any Arthritis Insight Community Member who emails them at dma@glogerm.com.

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Weekly News Summary
Karen Sears
kaekae@arthritisinsight.com

Tuesday, October 28, 2003
feature/acr2003/monday.html

• ACR: Leflunomide May Be Effective in Treatment of Psoriatic ...
  
• Lupus: Prolonged remission rare
  
• ACR: Older African Americans With Rheumatoid Arthritis Experience Joint Damage at Early Stages of Disease
  
• Cypress Bioscience Presents Data at the American College of Rheumatology Annual Meeting Demonstrating Benefits of Milnacipran for Fibromyalgia Patients Using Several Measurements of Pain
  
• ACR: Infliximab Might Help Children With Chronic Inflammatory Uveitis
  
• ACR: 12.5 mg/day Rofecoxib First Choice for Knee Osteoarthritis
  
• ACR: Valdecoxib and Rofecoxib Comparable at Two Weeks, Valdecoxib More Effective in First Six Hours, for Knee Osteoarthritis With Flare -
  
• ACR: Rituximab Monotherapy and Combination Therapies Show Promise for Severe Rheumatoid Arthritis
  
• ACR: Older African Americans With Rheumatoid Arthritis Experience Joint Damage at Early Stages of Disease
  
• ACR: Magnetic Resonance Imaging of Hand and Forefeet May Be an Effective Diagnostic Tool for Detection of Early Rheumatoid Arthritis -
  
• Antibodies May Help Predict Rheumatoid Arthritis
  
• Roche, Genentech Drug Helps Arthritis Long-Term
  

AI Staff
Page last updated on October 29, 2003