All News
Ixekizumab With Tirzepatide Efficacy in Obese Psoriatic Arthritis
The TOGETHER-PsA trial has demonstrated the efficacy and safety of ixekizumab (IXE) administered with tirzepatide (TZP) in adult active psoriatic arthritis (PsA) patients who were overweight or obese.
TENS Efficacy in Fibromyalgia
A randomized clinical trial of transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) in fibromyalgia showed meaningful improvement in pain for 6 months when combined with physical therapy (PT).
Read Article
Brepocitinib in Dermatomyositis
The NEJM reports that brepocitinib, an oral TYK2–JAK1 inhibitor, was studied in a phase 3 trial of refractory dermatomyositis (DM) patients and shown to have significant benefits at the higher dose.
Read Article
AFFINITY Study - Combination Biologic Therapy in Psoriatic Arthritis
A pilot trial assessed the efficacy and safety of the guselkumab+golimumab (COMBO) combination versus guselkumab (GUS) monotherapy in active PsA (failing a prior tumor necrosis factor inhibitor (TNFi-IR) and showed superiority in ACR 50 responses but not minimal di
Moral Distress (3.27.2026)
Dr. Jack Cush reviews the journal reports and news from RheumNow. This week we discuss moral distress, FM in PsA, Lyme Vax is back & hidden but tangible benefits of the MDHAQ.
https://t.co/LdNcsUcHc2 https://t.co/tRYeDhQ3hC
Dr. John Cush RheumNow ( View Tweet)
AXIS is an Intl prospective study of 409 psoriatic arthritis pts - found Axial involvement in 27.4% of pts. Axial PsA signif younger (45 vs 47.6 yrs) , male (56% vs 51.5%), more B27 positivity (22% vs 11%), inflammatory back pain (75% vs 43%), & ^CRP (53% vs 37%) https://t.co/XY5pf4BNNm
Dr. John Cush RheumNow ( View Tweet)
19 yr old male is Dx w/ Stills Dz (Fever 104F, pleuritis, organomegaly, WBC 24k, ESR 98, CRP 11 mg/L) - what drug do you prescribe first?
Dr. John Cush RheumNow ( View Tweet)
Portugese multicentre retrospective of 748 adults with JIA (age 28 yrs; Dz duration 21 yrs). Oligoarticular JIA was the most common subtype (29.9%). HTN (9%), psychiatric dz (8%), & osteoporosis (5%) were most prevalent comorbidities. bDMARD use reduced risk of psych Dz https://t.co/xCrTDxirlj
Dr. John Cush RheumNow ( View Tweet)
Psychiatrists have the highest Medicare opt-out rate (8% vs 1.2% MDs vs <3% Rheum), leading to a critical shortage of psychiatrists and more antipsychotic management to APRNs and PAs over the last decade. APPs Handle 40% of Antipsychotic Scripts https://t.co/wWnFcnXpRa https://t.co/WSQBEzvxgK
Dr. John Cush RheumNow ( View Tweet)
Myocarditis causes 17,000 deaths/Yr worldwide. Causes include A) iatrogenic/autoimmune: checkpoint inhibitors & gene therapy; B) High income countries: parvo B19, herpesvirus 6; C) low income: dengue, HIV, malaria and Trypanosoma cruzi (Chagas disease) https://t.co/en4OnhWPda https://t.co/urwkjlVeg6
Dr. John Cush RheumNow ( View Tweet)
19 yr old male is Dx w/ Stills Dz (Fever 104F, pleuritis, organomegaly, WBC 24k, ESR 98, CRP 11 mg/L) - what drug do you prescribe first?
Dr. John Cush RheumNow ( View Tweet)
Italian population study of 37996 RA (prevalence 0.54%) pts w/ and 12875 incident cases (incid rate 33.1/100K), there were 1288 deaths/8yrs (MR 21.3/1K), median age=83; SMR 1.28 (1.21 to 1.35), higher <45 yrs (2.15). Leading causes CV (37%), cancer (21%) & infxn (11%) https://t.co/wPx5iqW7Nl
Dr. John Cush RheumNow ( View Tweet)
Time to pregnancy (TTP) in 2 RA cohorts: PARA (n 245, 2002-10) vs PreCARA (n 215, 2011-23), latter Rx by T2T. Median TTP was 251d vs 91d (p<0·0001). Preg w/in 1 yrs was 42% v 77%. 61% PreCARA in remission https://t.co/qIHwXvfzMy https://t.co/1huBKiarhH
Dr. John Cush RheumNow ( View Tweet)
Target trial emulation: biologics or JAK vs RTX in RA-ILD -- abatacept (n=694), JAKi (156), IL-6i (389), or TNFi (734), PS-matched =# RTX; no significant differences (HR 0.74-1.09 NS) in outcomes of resp hosp, lung transplant & death. But ABA (HR 0.84) & JAKi (HR 0.62) had less https://t.co/2ZVyf8neVH
Dr. John Cush RheumNow ( View Tweet)
Advanced Practice Rheum: Rheumatoid & Inflammation Testing
In this review, we'll be talking about labs, inflammation, and tests for rheumatoid arthritis.
https://t.co/UlBuUhtB01 https://t.co/09OEk1OLs2
Dr. John Cush RheumNow ( View Tweet)
NEJM: Polymyalgia Rheumatica
Drs. Dejaco and Matteson have published and update and review of polymyalgia rheumatica (PMR) in the NEJM. They lay out the initial approach to diagnosis, initial steroid dosing, management over time and when to use steroid sparing therapy. https://t.co/CGXjcY0J3H
Dr. John Cush RheumNow ( View Tweet)
Long-Term Bimekizumab Safety Data
Adverse effects from bimekizumab through 2 years or more of treatment for psoriatic arthritis (PsA) and axial spondyloarthritis (axSpA) were about as expected from shorter-term data, results from long-term extension studies indicated. https://t.co/hp2jVSGk8G
Dr. John Cush RheumNow ( View Tweet)
Real-world safety of tofacitinib vs biologics in 48,167 #PsA pts Rx w/ TOFA (3,166); TNFi (27K); IL-17Ai (20K); risankizumab (4,381); ustekinumab (4,499). Crude IRs/100 PY were 1.78-2.53 for serious infxn, 0.27–0.61 MI/stroke, 0.17–0.42 VTE, & 0.74–1.06 cancer. TOFA had signif https://t.co/dErlkyY9WC
Dr. John Cush RheumNow ( View Tweet)
Advanced Practice Rheum: Evaluation of Rheumatic Complaints
In this review, Dr. Cush provides a systematic approach to evaluating musculoskeletal and rheumatic complaints in clinical practice. He emphasizes three key priorities: identifying "red flag" conditions (septic https://t.co/DwyO6FySxE
Dr. John Cush RheumNow ( View Tweet)
"At the end of the day, it’s not about what you have or even what you’ve accomplished. It’s about what you’ve done with those accomplishments. It’s about who you’ve lifted up, who you’ve made better. It’s about what you’ve given back."
- Denzel Washington
Dr. John Cush RheumNow ( View Tweet)
