Dietary Recommendations for Psoriatic Disease

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A systematic review by the Medical Board of the National Psoriasis Foundation examined the role of diet in managing adult patients with psoriasis and/or psoriatic arthritis and suggest that dietary interventions to reduce disease severity.

Managing Comorbidity and Poor Drug Responses

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Comorbidity is pervasive and complicates medical care in general. It can be a by-product of aging. It may result from drug therapy or an inciting disease process and may be part of the constellation that defines the primary disorder. A growing body of evidence that suggests that comorbidity has a significant dampening effect on drug responsiveness and, adds to poorer outcomes in patients with inflammatory arthritis.

Obesity, Hypertension and Diuretics Drive Gout Risk

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A recent metanalysis suggests that obesity, hypertension and diuretic use are associated with a two-fold increased risk of incident gout.

From a potential of 9923 articles, researchers analyzed 11 studies with data suitable for the meta-analysis.

NPF Dietary Recommendations for Psoriatic Disease

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The National Psoriasis Foundation has released dietary recommendations for adults with psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis, based on a systematic review of the current literature, with the strongest focus on weight reduction for those who are overweight or obese.

CDC Obesity Prevalence Higher in the Rural USA

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MMWR reports that approximately 46 million persons (14%) in the United States live in nonmetropolitan counties, where there is a higher prevalence of obesity-associated chronic diseases such as diabetes, coronary heart disease, and arthritis.

High anti-TNF Failure Rates with Obesity

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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

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.

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.

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.

Obesity Surgery Tames Knee OA Pain

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Laparoscopic gastric band (LAGB) surgery was associated with significant decreases in knee pain from osteoarthritis (OA), with the greatest improvements seen among those whose body mass index (BMI) had the greatest decreases and among younger patients, researchers reported.

Chronic Knee Pain Linked to Depression

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Chronic pain and depression are intimately linked, but Japanese researchers have found that up to 12% of knee osteoarthritis (OA) may develop depression and that such patients should be screened for depression over time.

Time to Rethink Gout as a Chronic Disease

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The current issue of JAMA has a perspective article on Gout’s bad rap as dietary disease rather than the complex, chronic inflammatory disorder that is ineffectively treated in many. 

The RheumNow Week in Review - 2 March 2018

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

Weight Loss Linked to RA Improvement

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By retrospectively reviewing electronic health record (EHR) data, Kreps et al found that rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients who lost >5 kg of weight were three times more likely to demonstrate improvement in disease activity.

Laparoscopic Gastric Sleeve Compared to Bypass Bariatric Surgery

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JAMA reports the results of a 5 year Finnish study comparing the results of laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy vs Roux-en-Y gastric bypass and shows that gastric bypass yielded greater weight loss at 5 years, the difference was not statistically significant, in patients with morbid obesity. 

40% of Arthritis Patients Fail to Receive Exercise Guidance

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The latest issue of CDC’s MMWR reports that exercise counseling among arthritis patients increased from 52% to 61% (2002 to 2014); hence ~40% do not receive health care provider counseling, suggesting the need for provider education and training in exercise counseling, and improved electroni

Worldwide Trends in BMI in Children, Adolescents and Adults

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Lancet reports on the analysis of 2416 studies, involving 128.9 million persons over 5 years of age shows previously rising trends in children's and adolescents' BMI have plateaued in many high-income countries, but still at high levels. 

Frequency of Rheumatoid Knee Replacements Down in the Biologic Era

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A time-series analysis of incident rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients seen between 1996 and 2011 in the Danish National Patient Register shows that the incidence of hip (THR) and knee replacements (TKR) began to decrease after the introdution of biologic agents for RA in 2002.

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