All News
Genentech Presents New Data on Actemra & Rituxan at ACR 2016
At the upcoming 2016 ACR/ARHP Annual Meeting, Genentech will present 15 oral presentations from 17 abstracts relating to the use of tocilizumab and rituximab in a number of varied autoimmune conditions.
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Crescendo and Vectra Presentations at ACR 2016
Crescendo Bioscience has announced that it will have 4 poster presentations at the American College of Rheumatology 2016 Annual Meeting next week.
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10 Tips for Immunization in Practice
Dr. Jerome Greenberg from UCLA has published 10 tips and pearls (based on years of teaching and experience) on immunizations in an out-patient practice:
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Agressive Early Treatment Prevents Rapid Bone Loss in Rheumatoid Arthritis
The International Osteoporosis Foundation has established the Chronic Inflammation and Bone Structure (CIBS) Working Group to address bone loss in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and the role of biologic therapies. They conclude that early and aggressive treatment with biologic disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs will help prevent progressive bone loss in patients with RA.
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Do Statins Reduce Cardiovascular Disease in Rheumatoid Arthritis?
RA increases CV risk considerably. But whose responsibility is it to manage CV risk in RA patients?
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Enbrel Approved for Pediatric Chronic Plaque Psoriasis
Etanercept (Enbrel) received FDA approval Friday for use in children with moderate to severe, chronic plaque psoriasis. Previously approved for adults with plaque psoriasis the new indication will be for chronic plaque psoriasis for those over age 4 years.
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Flu Shot for Egg-Allergic Patients – What to Do?
Flu season is upon us. While we try our best to vaccinate as many patients as possible, at times it can be challenging for reasons ranging from patient’s perceptions that the vaccine gives them the flu to others stating they are allergic to vaccine components.
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RheumNow Week in Review – 4 November 2016
Dr. Jack Cush reviews highlights and reports from this week on RheumNow.com, including drug-induced cutaneous lupus, pediatric lupus being worse, new gout drug SEL-12, Gut microbiome and IgA plasmablasts, and the weakly-received new ACP guidelines on gout.
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Opioids are Like Guns in the Hands of Children
The opioid abuse epidemic is well known and the focus of many regulators and health care personnel. The problem also affects the youngest Americans, according to a recent Washington Post article.
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Bariatric Surgery Thwarts Gout and Hyperuricemia
The rising incidence of gout has been directly linked to the obesity epidemic. The influence of obesity on gout was further tested in a cohort study of obese patients undergoing bariatric surgery as part of the Swedish Obese Subjects (SOS) study.
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ACP Gout Guidelines Reviewed and Critiqued by Rheumatologists
ACP released clinical practice guidelines for the diagnosis and management of gout. Interestingly, these are not always aligned with the 2012 ACR gout guidelines.
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Decreased CD4 T Cells with Rituximab Infusions
Rituximab (RTX) is a monoclonal antibody directed against the CD20 antigen on B cells and when administered causes a marked depletion of CD20+ B cells.
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Lymphotoxin B and Adipose Derived Stromal Cells Regulate Skin Fibrosis in Scleroderma
A possible mechanism behind the fibrosis that occurs in scleroderma has now been identified, a mechanism, researchers say, that may one day lead to a treatment for the disease.
IgA ACPA and Plasmablasts Point to Microbiome in Pre-Clinical Rheumatoid
Serum antibodies precede the development of clinical rheumatoid arthritis (RAby) by many years, and yet we still have much to learn about this preclinical phase.
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When Cheap Generics Morph Into Expensive Prescriptions
The Wall Street Journal has reported an alarming trend in generic drug pricing that affects many, especially the elderly and those with arthrtis.
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Prevalence of Inflammatory Bowel Disease Increases
The MMWR has reported that Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis, collectively known as inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), previously (1999) had an estimated 1.8 million (0.9%) prevalence. But as of 2015, an estimated 3.1 million (1.3%) of U.S.
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Is There a Familial Risk to Scleroderma?
Using population based data, researchers found a 10 fold increase prevalence of SSc in first degree relatives. That equates to a relative risk of 81. Genetic factors appear to be important in the risk for scleroderma.
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The RheumNow Week in Review – 28 October 2016
Dr. Jack Cush reviews highlights, news and journal reports from this week at RheumNow.com
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Simultaneous Versus Staged Bilateral Total Knee Arthroplasty
This metanalysis from 2013 reports on an important issue for orthopedists and rheumatologists alike. The issue being in those who need bilateral total knee arthroplasty, is it better to do both knees at once or to do one at a time (staged, serial) arthroplasties..
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POSTURE Study: Apremilast Fails in Ankylosing Spondylitis
ClinicalTrials.gov has listed the results of the POSTURE study, a large randomized placebo-controlled trial wherein apremilast was found to yield no benefit (compared to placebo) in treating ankylosing spondylitis (AS) (32.5% vs. 36.6% ASAS20 at week 16) patients.
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