This standing committee generally meets twice a year: during the annual EULAR Congress and during the European Workshop for Rheumatology Research. During these meetings information is provided about the activities of the study groups and of the EULAR organisation. Last year the standing committee contributed again to the organisation of the EULAR-ACR exchange programme. Four academic rheumatologists were selected to visit research centres in the United States in November 2000. The European investigators were Drs Grahame, Pap, Guerne, and Kamashta. This year a similar number of American investigators will visit European research centres. Furthermore, several members of this standing committee participated in the scientific programme of the annual EULAR Congress as well as in committees that selected candidates for research prizes.

The reports of the study groups can be summarised as follows.