New EULAR Pain Guidelines

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The European League Against Rheumatism (EULAR) convened a multidisciplinary task force including health professionals and patient representatives to develop evidence-based recommendations for pain management in patients with inflammatory arthritis (IA) and osteoarthritis (OA).

Elderly Often Untested for Sleep Apnea

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Geriatric patients are at a higher risk for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), yet they are seldom diiagnosed or evaluated for OSA.

A recent study shows that 56% of people 65 years and older have a high risk of OSA, but that only 8% were tested for OSA.

Tocilizumab Beats Anti-TNFs for Treatment Retention

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Patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) who had previously had an inadequate response to one biologic agent remained on tocilizumab (Actemra) longer than on a tumor necrosis factor (TNF) inhibitor, whether or not conventional disease modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs) were given concomitantl

Patients May Not Fill Your Prescription

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A new study linking administrative claims and electronic health records (EHRs) shows that nearly 40% of patients fill and take newly prescribed methotrexate (MTX), tofacitinib or biologics. 

Kan et al set out to estimate the extent and predictors of primary nonadherence in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients who received new prescriptions for methotrexate, biologics or tofacitinib.

60 Minutes Drills Acthar - A Financially Crippling Drug

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Acthar is in the news again. Previously a New York Times article lambasted the drug as the "single most expensive drug per patient", based on it costing Medicare  $16,2371 per patient for nearly 3100 patients. Overall, costing Medicare a half-billion US dollars per year. 

Severity of Lupus Nephritis is Declining over Time

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A retrospective follow-up study of 499 lupus nephritis (LN) patients over three successive eras shows that LN has become less severe in recent years and thus, better long-term survival is possible.

Mortality Risks Shift in Granulomatosis with Polyangiitis

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Mortality remains high in granulomatosis with polyangiitis (GPA), but the causes of death tend to change over time, a researcher reported here.

Rising Need for Weight Loss Counseling in Arthritic Patients

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The CDC's May 4th MMWR reports that from 2002 to 2014, the prevalence of health care provider counseling for weight loss among adults with arthritis and overweight or obesity increased by 10% (from 35% to 45%).

Among the 54.4 million adults with doctor-diagnosed arthritis in the United States, 32.7% are overweight and 38.1% are obese. Moreover obesity is more prevalent among persons with arthritis than among those who do not have arthritis.

Bisphosphonate Drug Holidays May Result in Fractures

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A report in Endocrine Practice shows that drug holidays from bisphosphonates results in a 15% risk of fractures.  (Citation source: 

The RheumNow Week in Review – Why Comorbidity is Like the Weather (5.3.18)

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Dr. Jack Cush discusses the news and journal articles from the past week on RheumNow.com.

Targeting IL-17A: A Winner in PsA

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Psoriatic arthritis patients with inadequate response to tumor necrosis factor (TNF) inhibitors had improvements in their arthritis and psoriasis when treated with the interleukin (IL)-17A blocker ixekizumab (Taltz), according to a phase III study presented here at the

Fish Oil Fails in Dry Eye Trial

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Many topical and OTC products are recommended when treating chronic dry eyes, including omega-3 fatty acids (fish oil or n−3 fatty acids) to relieve symptoms; the NEJM reports that the DREAM trial shows no clinical benefit of n−3 fatty acids for 12 months when compared to placebo.

Genetic Breakthrough in Systemic JIA

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The identification of a genetic susceptibility locus for systemic juvenile idiopathic arthritis (sJIA) has important implications for treatment of this severe, poorly understood illness, researchers reported.

Tick, Mosquite-Borne Diseases Triple Since 2004

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The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has a new report showing that from 2004 to 2016, the number of Americans infected by mosquitoes, ticks or fleas tripled from 27,388 in 2004, to 96,075 in 2016. 

From 2015 to 2016, these infections rose by 73 percent. This included new Zika and chikungunya virus infections, (41,680 in 2016), followed by Lyme disease (36,429 cases). This may be an underestimation as as many infections are not reported.

Comorbidities Undermine Clinical Outcomes in Psoriatic Arthritis

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Analysis of data from the DANBIO registry of psoriatic arthritis patients treated with tumor necrosis factor inhibitor therapy shows that comorbidities were associated with higher baseline disease activity, shorter TNFi persistence, and reduced clinical response rates to TNFi.

Severe Obesity Worsens Disability in Rheumatoid Arthritis

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A study from the Veterans Affairs clinics and the National Data Bank of Rheumatic Diseases shows that rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients who were severely obese had a greater risk of progressive disability compared to overweight patients; that was not explained by their arthritis or inflammation.

The RheumNow Week in Review – FDA Showdown for Baricitinib (4.27.18)

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Dr. Jack Cush reviews the news and FDA proceedings from the past week on RheumNow.com.

FDA Advisors Weigh COX-2 Inhibitor Safety

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Should celecoxib (Celebrex) be officially declared as no riskier for the heart than other non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) naproxen and ibuprofen, and do those other NSAIDs interfere with aspirin for cardiovascular prevention?

Fixed and Tailored Rituximab Regimens Equal in ANCA Associated Vasculitis

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The French Vasculitis Study Group has published the results of the MAINRITSAN2 trial designed to  compare individually tailored versus fixed-schedule rituximab (RTX) reinfusion for remission maintenance in patients with antineutrophil cytoplasm antibody (ANCA)-associated vasculitides (AAVs).

FDA Arthritis Panel Split on the Efficacy and Safety of Baricitinib in RA

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On Monday, April 23rd the FDA convened the Arthritis Advisory Committee (AAC) to evaluate Lilly’s resubmitted NDA for the approval of the JAK inhibitor baricitinib for use in rheumatoid arthritis (RA).