TY - JOUR T1 - The Wisdom of the PHAROS JF - The Journal of Rheumatology JO - J Rheumatol SP - 2089 LP - 2091 DO - 10.3899/jrheum.111008 VL - 38 IS - 10 AU - STEPHEN C. MATHAI Y1 - 2011/10/01 UR - http://www.jrheum.org/content/38/10/2089.abstract N2 - In The Hermetica: The Lost Wisdom of the Pharaohs, Timothy Freke and Peter Gandy present a translation of the Greco-Egyptian sage Hermes Trismegistus’s writings1. Thought to have been written around 3000 BC, these teachings encompass the mystical philosophy of ancient Egypt and have been ascribed as inspiration for artists, philosophers, and scientists such as Leonardo da Vinci, Carl Jung, and Sir Isaac Newton. While the current study in this issue of The Journal may not have the same far-reaching impact, the potential for advancement of our understanding of pulmonary vascular disease related to systemic sclerosis (SSc) is significant.If the efficient study of rare diseases is quite challenging, the study of the intersection of 2 rare diseases is nearly impossible. SSc, with an estimated incidence of less than 20 persons per million per year in the United States, is significantly less common than other rheumatologic diseases such as systemic lupus erythematosus and rheumatoid arthritis, whose incidence in the US population is estimated at around 50 persons per million and over 300 persons per million, respectively2,3. While the incidence of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) remains unknown in the US, results from the national registry in France suggest an incidence of 2.4 cases per million; this estimate includes persons with various forms of PAH including those related to connective tissue diseases4. In cohort studies of patients with SSc, the prevalence of PAH ranges from 8% to 14% when the diagnosis is based upon right heart catheterization (RHC)5. Despite its relatively low prevalence, PAH remains the second most common cause of death … Address correspondence to Dr. S. Mathai, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, 1830 E. Monument St., Room 516, Baltimore, MD 21205; E-mail: smathai4{at}jhmi.edu ER -