About
Polymyalgia rheumatica (PMR) is an inflammatory disease characterized by subacute onset pain and stiffness in the shoulders and hips. Oral glucocorticoids represent the mainstay of treatment and while cessation of therapy is the ultimate goal, up to 50% of patients with PMR continue to require prednisolone 2–3 years after diagnosis.
In 2016, the Outcome Measures in Rheumatology (OMERACT) endorsed a core domain set for PMR. The inner core of the “onion,” signifying items to be measured in all PMR clinical trials, consisted of 4 domains: pain, stiffness, physical function, and systemic inflammation.
Current Stage in the OMERACT Process
The PMR Working Group is advancing instrument selection for key domains such as pain and function. Updated checklists and discrimination testing are underway to complete this phase.
Latest Update
Current Objectives and Focus Areas
The OMERACT PMR Working Group continues to work on instrument selection in order to arrive at a core outcome measurement set. Workbooks for Pain (NRS/VAS) and Physical Function (HAQ-DI) had been partially completed prior to the transition to checklists, with the recent explosion of high-quality clinical trials in the field also permitting the Group to now proceed with Clinical Trial Discrimination.
Recent Milestones Achieved
Although 2024 proved to be a quiet year for the PMR Working Group, we are hopeful that the foundations have been laid to re-establish momentum throughout 2025. The Group has now appointed additional Co-Chairs in Dr Thomas Bolhuis (Nijmegen, Netherlands), Dr Sebastian Sattui (Pittsburgh, USA) and Dr Max Yates (Norwich, UK), along with welcoming four new Fellows – Dr Sharon Cowley (Dublin, Ireland), Dr Raisa Lomanto Silva (Boston, USA), Dr Task Toyoda (Leeds, UK) and Dr Victor Yang (Melbourne, Australia).
Upcoming Activities and Deliverables
Moving forward, the following workstreams will be prioritised:
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Publication of the detailed domain definitions, stems and anchors project and preliminary validation exercise;
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Transition of the completed sections of the Pain and Physical Function workbooks to checklists;
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Completion of the Clinical Trial Discrimination and Thresholds of Meaning checklists for Pain (VAS/NRS) and Physical Function (HAQ-DI);
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Completion of interviews with PMR patients and qualitative analysis of findings to inform future activities of the Relapse/Remission Subgroup.
Meet the Team
Thomas Bolhuis, Netherlands
Chair
Claire Owen, Australia
Chair
Catherine Hill, Australia
Chair
Sarah Mackie, UK
Chair
Sebastian Sattui, USA
Chair
OMERACT Endorsed Core Domain Set for Polymyalgia Rheumatica (PMR)
Recent Publications
Leung, Jessica L., et al. “Test-Retest Reliability of Pain VAS/NRS, Stiffness VAS/NRS, HAQ-DI and mHAQ in Polymyalgia Rheumatica: An OMERACT Study.” Seminars in Arthritis and Rheumatism, vol. 62, 152239, 2023, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.semarthrit.2023.152239.
Owen, Claire E., et al. “Toward a Core Outcome Measurement Set for Polymyalgia Rheumatica: Report from the OMERACT 2018 Special Interest Group.” Journal of Rheumatology, vol. 46, no. 10, 2019, pp. 1360–64, https://doi.org/10.3899/jrheum.181050.