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Industry Abstract Previews #ACR21 - Horizon, Aurinia, AstraZeneca
The pharmaceutical companies will feature the results of their pivotal clinical trials and data analyses at ACR Convergence 2021. Below is a listing of some of their best studies for you to review and look for in the meeting.
Read ArticleNegative Concerns of Telemedicine in Rheumatology
Post-pandemic structured surveys and interviews with rheumatology patients suggests they may prefer for face-to-face consultations, as telehealth visits run the risk of diagnostic inaccuracies and safety concerns.
Read ArticleInfection Rates in Psoriatic Arthritis Patients on Biologics Have Decreased
New research presented this week at ACR Convergence, the American College of Rheumatology’s annual meeting, shows significant decreases in infections among people with psoriatic arthritis over the years 2012-2017.
Read ArticleJAK-pot Study: Cycling JAK Inhibitors Effective in Difficult-to-Treat RA
New research presented this week at ACR Convergence, the American College of Rheumatology’s annual meeting, shows that people with difficult-to-treat rheumatoid arthritis who do not have success with one Janus kinase inhibitor (JAK inhibitor) can achieve success either cycling to other JAKi medic
Read ArticleUltra-Low Dose Rituximab Controls Disease Activity in RA
New research presented this week at ACR Convergence, the American College of Rheumatology’s annual meeting, shows that in one study, the majority of rheumatoid arthritis patients on an ultra-low dose of the drug rituximab maintained low disease activity for up to four years, and rarely needed to switch to other biologic drugs or glucocorticoids to control their disease (Abstract #1443).
Read ArticleManagement of Immune-Related Adverse Events - ASCO Guideline
The American Society of Clinical Oncology, Inc (ASCO) has updated its guidelines and recommendations for the management of immune-related adverse events (irAEs) in patients treated with immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICPi) therapy. Below are select statements from this guideline.
Read ArticleSerologically Active, Clinically Quiescent SLE
Lupus management is guided by assessment of both clinical and serologic features; but what happens with the patient with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) serologically active, but clinically quiescent (SACQ)? A large cohort study shows that nearly one-third of such patients may flare
Read ArticleClues to Survival and Mortality with VEXAS Syndrome
New research to be presented this week at ACR Convergence, the American College of Rheumatology’s annual meeting, shows a relationship between genotype, bone marrow failure and survival in patients with the rare autoinflammatory disease VEXAS syndrome, which was only identified in 2020.
Read ArticleLarge GWAS Study Reveals Genetic Basis for Osteoarthritis Phenotypes
Cell has published the results of a multinational, GWAS meta-analyses of 826,690 individuals that included 177,517 osteoarthritis patients, finding 52 previously unknown osteoarthritis (OA) genetic risk variants and linking OA genetic risks with joint distribution and pain
Read ArticleRheumNow Podcast – Like Father, Like Daughter (10.29.2021)
Bad things happen when our patients go into the ICU and it's not always due to the disease. Good things happen when we rise from sitting. And guess what? Rheumatologists are setting cardiology straight about hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine. This, and a special recognition of parent-child rheumatologists, along with the news and articles from this week on RheumNow.
Read ArticleRheumatoid Arthritis Thrombotic Risk Influenced by DMARD Choice
RA patients have an increased risk of venous thromboembolism (VTE) related to disease activity and inflammation, yet a large real-world study of older RA patients shows methotrexate to be associated with a 2-fold increased VTE risk (compared to hydroxychloroquine).
Read ArticleNew Hope for NonAlcoholic Fatty Liver Disease
The current issue of the NEJM has two articles on nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD also called NASH - nonalcoholic steatohepatitis), one dealing with the prognoses, outcomes and mortality of NAFLD and another prospective and promising interventional trial in NASH patients.
Read ArticleHow Should Patients With Autoimmune Diseases Approach COVID Vaccination?
Healthcare is a personal and individualized relationship between a provider and patient. Each patient is treated according to their particular symptoms and personal health characteristics.
Read ArticleIncreased Preterm Birth Risk in Psoriatic Arthritis Pregnancies
Pregnancy outcomes may be affected by psoriatic arthritis or antirheumatic treatment; registry cohort study shows that preterm birth and cesarean delivery were mostly increased by antirheumatic treatment, especially biologics.
Read ArticleRheumNow Podcast – Rheumatologist Smoke-Enders (10.22.2021)
Today I have a few questions: Is tramadol really a weak narcotic? Should we really still be doing placebo-controlled trials? What are we going to do about our patients who are smokers? This and more, in this week's review of the news and journal articles.
Read ArticleSmoking Impairs Methotrexate Efficacy
The Journal of Rheumatology reports that current smoking significantly reduces the clinical efficacy of methotrexate (MTX)-based therapy, as studied in an early rheumatoid arthritis (RA) cohort.
Read ArticleStevens-Johnson Syndrome and Toxic Epidermal Necrolysis Insights
Stevens-Johnson syndrome (SJS) and toxic epidermal necrolysis (TEN) are among the most severe drug reactions, as they come with substantial mortality and morbidity. A review of European centers dealing with SJS and TEN shows that despite best treatment practices, the 6-week mortality rate was 21%.
Read ArticleIs It OK to Continue TNF Inhibitors with COVID-19 Infection?
Registry level data of patients with immune-mediated inflammatory diseases (IMIDs) diagnosed with COVID-19 should continue their TNF inhibitor (TNFi) therapy as such patients were less likely to experience adverse COVID-19 outcomes (compared to other immunomodulatory treatments).
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Dr. John Cush RheumNow ( View Tweet)


