HSS rheumatologist Sergio Schwartzman, MD, addressed how patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) pose unique surgical risks that require postoperative monitoring at the 2018 California Rheumatology Alliance meeting, MedPage Today reported.

"It's always been a challenge to us to know how to manage these patients who have unique needs and unique risks. Some of that is referable to the medications used to treat them," said Dr. Schwartzman.

"The challenge of the medication assessment is to achieve a balance among competing objectives: maintaining disease control, optimizing wound healing, and minimizing perioperative morbidity, especially infections," he added.

According to the article, recent guidelines suggested that patients should restart biologics at the onset of wound healing after surgery.

Read the full article at medpagetoday.com