Fibromyalgia Diagnosed by Two Simple Tests

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Researchers from the Oregon Health Science Center have reported that fibromyalgia can be distinguished from chronic pain by primary care providers (PCPs) who employ two simple screening tests: BP cuff-evoked pain and a single patient question, and pain induced by pinching the Achilles tendon.&nbs

Ixekizumab (Taltz) FDA Approved for Psoriatic Arthritis

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On Friday, December 1st, the FDA approved Lilly's drug Taltz (ixekizumab) for use in adult patients with moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis who are candidates for systemic therapy or phototherapy. 

Taltz, an IL-17 inhibitor, has previously been approved for plaque psoriasis where it has shown high level PASI75 and PASI100 responses.

The ACR17 RheumNow Week in Review - 1 December 2017

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Dr Jack Cush reviews nighlights and news from the past 2 weeks on RheumNow.com. This week's report includes new drug approvals, disappointing ACR guidelines, Lyme & Zika, infertility, dermatomyositis skin outcomes and myositis-associated cancer testing.

Skin Remission in Dermatomyositis is Uncommon

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JAMA Dermatology reports that clinical remission was relatively uncommon in dermatomyositis, despite aggressive systemic therapy, but was best in those receiving mycophenolate during a 3-year study.

Weight Loss Does Not Protect OA Knees

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A new study presented at the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) shows that obese people with substantial weight loss may significantly slow down the rate of joint space narrowing (cartilage degeneration) in the knee cartilage, but only if they lose weight through diet and exercise or di

Pregnancy Outcomes Worse with Myopathies

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Women with the autoimmune inflammatory myopathies dermatomyositis (DM) and polymyositis (PM) are at increased risk for hypertensive disorders in pregnancy, a nationwide retrospective study found.

ACR Clinical Guidelines Flawed by Low Evidence

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JAMA Internal Medicine has reported that recommendations and clinical practice guidelines from the American College of Rheumatology are often based on expert opinion, but lack rigorous (grade A) evidence to support many of their recommendations. 

Physician Visit Times Vary Worldwide

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A metanalysis published in BMJ Open shows that for half of the world’s population, primary care doctor visits last less than five minutes and that the range is from 48 seconds in Bangladesh to 22.5 minutes in Sweden (US PCP visit averages at 20 minutes).

Prevalence of Arthritis Grossly Underestimated

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Researchers at the Boston University School of Medicine have published a new report showing that arthritis affected 91 million adults in the US in 2015 or 37% of the poplulation. Their prevalence estimate is 68% higher than previously reported arthritis national estimates. 

Gout Associated with Work Absenteeism

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Annals of Rheumatic Disease reports that gout is associated with higher work absenteeism and thus, increased costs for society due to productivity loss.

CDC Lyme Disease Surveillance Report

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Lyme disease, caused by the spirochete Borrelia burdofgeri, is the most common vector-borne illness reported in the U.S.

Surgical Decompression Ineffective for Subacromial Shoulder Pain

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Lancet reports that a common surgical intervention, arthroscopic sub-acromial decompression is ineffective compared to arthroscopy or no surgery at all.

Vitamin D Insensitivity in the Rheumatoid Joint

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Researchers from the University of Birmingham have shown that while Vitamin D may be effective at preventing the onset of inflammation, it is less effective once inflammatory disease is established - largely because, once established, rheumatoid arthritis leads to vitamin D insensitivity.

Opioid Crisis Costs US $500 Billion

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Reuters reports that the opioid crisis has cost the United States as much as $504 billion in 2015,  based on a White House economists report released this week. The White House Council of Economic Advisers (CEA) said the toll from the opioid crisis represented 2.8% of gross dom

RheumNow ACR 2017 Awards

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The Annual Meeting of the American College of Rheumatology is a gargantuan educational and professional event that is on nearly everyone's radar each year. RheumNow had an expansive effort to cover this meeting and you can review the work of our faculty at ACR17.RheumNow.com.  But we have decided to take this one step further and today we are announcing our 2017 RheumNow ACR Awards.

ACR Award Recipients 2017

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The American College of Rheumatology opened the 2017 meeting by inducting the new president (Dr. David Daikh) and officers and announcing its 2017 Award Winners. These recognitions are given annually to members who exhibit outstanding contributions to the field of rheumatology.

ACR17 Good News – Ankylosing Spondylitis and Spondyloarthritis

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The following is a collection of AS/SpA-specific mentions culled from RheumNow's coverage of the Annual ACR 2017 meeting in San Diego.

J&J Hit with a $247 Million Verdict over Metal-on-Metal Hip Replacements

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Reuters reports that a federal jury has ordered Johnson & Johnson and its DePuy Orthopaedics division to pay $247 million settlment to six patients who suffered from its defective Pinnacle, metal-on-metal, hip implants. in the US. J&J says it will  appeal this decision.

The RheumNow Week in Review - 17 November 2017

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Dr. Jack Cush reviews the news and highlights from the past week on RheumNow.com. This week he covers FDA warnings on gout drugs, steroid use in Australia, biosimilars lost savings and methotrexate hepatotoxicity in psoriatic arthritis (PsA).

Stroke Increased in Rheumatoid Arthritis

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Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic, inflammatory disease with systemic effects beyond the joints. While RA patients are known to have signficantly higher risks for cardiovascular disease and venous thromboembolic events, an association with stroke (CVA) is unclear.