All News
Vedolizumab Implicated in Exacerbations of SpA in IBD Patients
Beloved by gastroenterologist for treatment of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), α4β7 integrin receptor vedolizumab (VDZ) has probably caught attention of many rheumatologist since the time it entered the market; largely for what it won't do for inflammatory arthritis.
Read Article
JAK Inhibition in Autoinflammatory Syndromes Interferonopathies
While many autoinflammatory syndromes are driven and managed with select inhibition of IL-1, IL-18 or IL-6, a subset are driven by type I interferon and are referred to as interferonopathies. These monogenic IFN–mediated disorders present in infancy with fevers, systemic inflammation, an IFN response gene signature, inflammatory organ damage, and high mortality.
Read Article
TNF Inhibitors Don't Increase Cancer Risk in Children
While the risk of neoplasia with tumour necrosis factor inhibitor (TNFi) use has been largely nullified in most inflammatory disorders, this risk in children is less certain. However a recent study shows no risk of increased cancer in children treated with TNFi for juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA), pediatric inflammatory bowel disease (pIBD) and pediatric plaque psoriasis (pPsO).
Read Article
The Microbiome and Lupus Connection Reviewed
In the current issue of the New England Journal of Medicine, Drs. James Rosenbaum and Gregg Silverstein review the pathogenesis of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) from the viewpoint of a dysbiolsis.
Read Article
Risk of Psoriasis Complicating TNF Inhibitor Therapy
A population-based study of claims data from Korea shows that among inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) patients receiving tumour necrosis factor inhibitors (TNFi) there is a 3.7 per 100 patient-year risk of paradoxically developing psoriasis - a rate that is roughly 3-fold higher than risk in TNFi-naive IBD patients.
Read Article
Canada Closer to Marijuana Approval
Reuters reports that Canada’s Senate on Thursday voted to legalize recreational marijuana, clearing a major hurdle that puts the country on track to become the first Group of Seven nation to permit national use of the drug.
Read Article
The RheumNow Week in Review – Baricitinib Splash (6.7.18)
Dr. Jack Cush discusses the past week's news and journal articles featured on RheumNow.com - including reports on advance practice clinicians, baricitinib, gout, disease activity, hypomagnesemia and upadacitinib.
Read Article
Advance Practice Clinicians Proliferating in Specialty Practices
An analysis of SK&A outpatient provider files, covering 90% of physician practices in the United States, shows that between 2008 to 2016, there was a 22% increase in the employment of advanced practice clinicians (APCs) by specialty practices. By 2016, 28% of all specialty practices employed APCs.
Read Article
SPAR Predicts ILD Progression in Systemic Sclerosis
The development and progression of interstitial lung disease in systemic sclerosis can be an ominous finding.
Read Article
Blacks Suffer When Pain is Poorly Defined
Racial discrimination was a key feature at a 2-day summit on pain management and the opioid crisis, hosted by the National Institutes of Health on Thursday and Friday.
Read Article
Prescription Drug Monitoring Programs Fail to Deter Opiate Abuse
A systematic review of prescription drug monitoring programs (PDMPs), advocated in the president's Prescription Drug Abuse Prevention Plan, fails to show evidence of efficacy in preventing nonfatal and fatal overdoses.
Read Article
Low Disease Activity in Lupus Limits Damage
Patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) who were assessed as being in a low disease activity state during more than half of clinical visits had a decrease in organ damage events of approximately 50%, a retrospective study found.
Read Article
Sons of Gout Study
The genetics and heritability of gout has suggested a higher risk in certain families. A UK cohort study examined the prevalence of gout and monosodium urate (MSU) crystal deposition among those at risk (sons of gout patients) for gout and found a high incidence of hyperuricemia and MSU crystal deposition.
Read Article
Long Term Remission in SLE is Possible?
Researchers from the Toronto Lupus Clinic have described an atypical “monophasic” course in a small number (7.5%) of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) patients who achieved and sustained clinical remission, with most off of all medications for an average of 18 years.
Read Article
FDA Approves Low Dose Baricitinib for Rheumatoid Arthritis
The US Food and Drug Administration has approved baricitinib (Olumiant) for use in adults in moderate-to-severe active rheumatoid arthritis (RA) who have had an inadequate response to TNF inhibitors (TNFi). It is not approved for use, nor has it been studied, in children.
Read Article
FDA Approves Baricitinib 2 mg for Rheumatoid Arthritis
Today the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved baricitinib (Oluminant) at the lower dose of 2 mg per day for use in adults with with moderate-to-severe active rheumatoid arthritis (RA) who have had an inadequate response to commonly-used treatments known as TNF inhibitors.
Read Article
The RheumNow Week in Review – Good News for GPA, CZP, Tofa but not ERA (6.1.18)
Dr. Jack Cush reviews this weeks reports from RheumNow.com, including the risk of autoimmunity with vaccination, early RA outcomes, new FDA approvals for certolizumab and tofacitinib and the risk of death from infection with biologics.
Read Article
MRI Imaging for Sacroiliitis Requires Bone Marrow Edema for Reliability
de Winter and colleagues from the Netherlands have reported on magnetic resonance imaging of the sacroiliac joints of healthy subjects, patients with axial spondyloarthritis, runners and those with chronic back pain, and found a high incidence of sacroiliitis in many, but that deep bone marrow edema was most specific for those with axial SpA.
Read Article
Ustekinumab: A Novel Intervention in Giant Cell Arteritis
Treatment of refractory giant cell arteritis (GCA) with ustekinumab (Stelara) showed therapeutic promise as a steroid-sparing agent in a small, open-label study, Irish researchers reported.
Read Article
High anti-TNF Failure Rates with Obesity
A meta-analysis has suggested that obesity is an under-reported predictor of inferior response to tumor necrosis factor blockade (anti-TNF) in a range of inflammatory immune-mediated inflammatory diseases (IMIDs), with the results showing a 60% risk of impaired response to anti-TNF across several
Read Article