Tuesday, December 30, 2014

Therametrics: Possible Dupuytren Drugs


Therametrics (http://Therametrics.com)  has a novel approach to therapeutic drug discovery which may fit well with efforts to find a cure for Dupuytren disease. Studying Dupuytren disease is difficult because the biology is amazingly complicated. Many different types of drugs might be helpful - too many for any one person to sort through. It's also difficult because it progresses slowly and unpredictably - not good for testing by trial and error. This is a perfect problem for computer analysis - to sort through millions of scientific publications across many different fields of biology, and find hidden clues to what might work. This is what Therametrics software does - sifts through the internet, cross referencing drugs and biology: http://www.therametrics.com/pages-40-drr.html.

Therametrics has been kind enough to demonstrate some of the power of their tools for the Dupuytren Foundation by running an analysis on possible drugs to treat Dupuytren disease. The goal is to identify existing drugs whose effects overlap those of Dupuytren biology. For example, some drug already available for high blood pressure, baldness, or other conditions might also hold the key to help Dupuytren biology. Rather than reinventing the wheel, this approach finds a whole range of existing wheels. A summary of what they found is available at http://Dupuytrens.org/DupPDFs/TherametricsDupuytren.pdf. Pretty complicated, but very exciting. This is the tipping point between "I wonder if this will do anything?" to "Here's why this should work.". This is a giant leap forward, not just for Dupuytren disease research, but for any condition in need of a better medical treatment.


Tuesday, December 2, 2014

Google Glass and Dupuytren Procedures

A neat use of Google Glass to record procedures for Dupuytren disease:
http://glasshandsurgery.blogspot.com/2014/11/google-glass-used-in-hand-surgery.html
Next step is to miniaturize the view and track down the culprit molecules!

Friday, November 14, 2014

Dupuytren Foundation Matching Gift Opportunity

We will Double your Dupuytren Donation Dollars thru December!
Dupuytren Foundation matching gift details here.

Donate here!

Sunday, November 9, 2014

Big data editorial

The path to understanding Dupuytren disease is being built on evolving technologies: patient crowdsourcing; genetic analysis; big data. We're not alone. This editorial discusses the impact of big data on medical research:http://www.amjorthopedics.com/uploads/media/ajo043090399.pdf.

Thursday, November 6, 2014

Dupuytren Minute Message: Sports and exercise 3

Tread Lightly on Your Palms

Dupuytren biology involves myofibroblasts, provoked by mechanical forces, among other things; nice review article here: http://goo.gl/3XSOkp. Stretching fingers backward - intuitive, logical ...and probably the exact wrong thing to do for Dupuytren. Pushups? Use pushup handles or fist pushups on padding; same for yoga downward dog position. Adapt and keep going! 

Thursday, October 30, 2014

Video Interviews: What would hand surgeons want for their own Dupuytren disease?

Rolling out the second video from a series of interviews at this year's annual meeting of the American Society for Surgery of the Hand. Each video features  surgeons answering one question about Dupuytren disease. Twenty hand surgeons answer the question "What's your plan if you get Dupuytren disease?" http://youtu.be/94JHxC-FZW0

Stay tuned for more videos in coming weeks:subscribe to the Dupuytren Foundation YouTube channel: http://Dupuytren.tv  #Dupuytren

Dupuytren Minute Message: Sports and Exercise 2

Rock Climbing and Dupuytren Disease

Rock climbing increases risk of Dupuytren contracture. Read the full article here:  http://goo.gl/Ns2xOE
The more hours spent, the greater the risk. Why? Dupuytren biology is fed by mechanical stress. Stress alone won't give you Dupuytren disease, but with genetic Dupuytren risk, stressing your palms might start it early. Probably same for handball, rowing, BMX: all stress the palm. Be nice to your hands.  #Dupuytren

Thursday, October 23, 2014

Two treats:
 1. Watch the first video in an upcoming series of interviews at this year's annual meeting of the American Society for Surgery of the Hand. Each video features  surgeons answering one question about Dupuytren disease: http://youtu.be/UMcH32yrY2c
Stay tuned for more videos in coming weeks at:
 2. Advance the understanding of Dupuytren disease and related conditions in just one minute. We're gearing up for the 2015 International Conference on Dupuytren disease and want to survey as many people with Dupuytren and Ledderhose disease as possible.  Please take a minute to fill this out even if you don't have Ledderhose or Dupuytren - we need your input. http://esurv.org/?u=DupLed .

Support the Dupuytren foundation while shopping on Amazon; It's easy!  AmazonSmile will make a donation to the Dupuytren Foundation for every eligible Amazon.com purchase  with no extra cost to you if you click here to shop Amazon4Dup.com

Dupuytren Minute Message: Sports and Exercise:

Mind Your Grip

Sports and Exercise:

Dupuytren biology is provoked by mechanical stress. If you have Dupuytren disease, don't stop exercising, but look into ways to reduce the stress on your palms when you work out. You can cushion or shield your palms with workout gloves, pull up hooks, or pull up pads. Also, anything which increases the diameter of your grip reduces the amount of shearing stress on your palm when you grip. Take advantage of this by using padded gloves (welder's gloves are good), larger grips on weights, golf clubs and tennis racquets. 

Tuesday, July 29, 2014

International Dupuytren Society Survey Now Available

Do you or does someone you know have either Dupuytren Disease, Ledderhose Disease, or both? Here's a message from the International Dupuytren Society:

"The International Dupuytren Society, the Ledderhose Blog, and the British Dupuytren Society have jointly developed a questionnaire targeting patients suffering from Dupuytren and/or Ledderhose disease. Please share your experience with these diseases, treatments and consultations! 

The questionnaire is available at  http://eSurv.org?u=DupLed  

The individual results are strictly confidential and the summary results will be used to evaluate patients' experience with treatments and patients' needs. Researchers often speak about what patients need but this is rarely evaluated. Please help us to document patients' experience and needs! "

I've taken the survey. It's painless and fun. Online surveys are increasingly important in understanding conditions such as Dupuytren and Ledderhose disease, which can vary so much from person to person. Results of this survey will be presented at the 2015 International Conference on Dupuytren Disease http://DupuytrenSymposium.com

 - Charlie Eaton