15% of Users Exceed Recommended OTC NSAID Dosing

Save

New data shows that nearly 15 percent of adult ibuprofen users exceed the maximum recommended dose of ibuprofen or other NSAIDs in a one-week period. 

Higher Fracture Risk with PMR and GCA

Save

Corticosteroid therapy is integral to the treatment of polymyalgia rheumatica (PMR) and giant cell arteritis (GCA) and a new retrospective cohort study from the UK shows that PMR and GCA have similar, increased risk of fractures.

Obesity Outweighs Psoriasis in Comorbidity Risk with Children

Save

Like their adult counterparts, psoriasis in children is an independent risk factor for comorbidity, but not as much as  obesity.

Anti-Drug Antibodies Partly Explain Secondary TNF Inhibitor Failures

Save

An observational study of patients with active rheumatoid arthritis (RA) or spondyloarthritis (SpA) experiencing secondary failure to TNF inhibitor (TNFi) therapy showed that (secondary) loss of efficacy to a TNFi was associated with anti-drug antibodies in less than 30% of patients. 

PRESERVE Study: HAQ, BMI and Age Predict Responses to Combo Therapy

Save

Rheumatoid arthritis patients who were younger and who had lower body mass index, Health Assessment Questionnaire (HAQ) scores, and less disease activity at baseline were most likely to achieve remission after combination etanercept (Enbrel) and methotrexate induction therapy, a post hoc analysis of the PRESERVE trial found.

Teriparatide Superior to Risedronate in the VERO Trial

Save

Lancet reports that in a study teriparatide with risedronate, post-menopausal women with severe osteoporosis had significantly fewer new vertebral and clinical fractures on teriparatide comared to those receiving risedronate.

Apremilast’s Rapid Onset in Psoriatic Arthritis

Save

Monotherapy with apremilast (Otezla) among patients with psoriatic arthritis who were biologic-naive was significantly more effective than placebo as early as week 2 in a phase IIIb study. 

Problems with Biologic Drug Storage

Save

Is your patient’s refrigerator the problem with the inefficacy of biologic therapies? Studies show most patients don't store their biologics correctly, which may be a source of limited drug efficacy.

Weight Loss Linked to RA Improvement

Save

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.

Prevention of HBV Infection: How Are We Doing?

Save

In 2016 the WHO set out to eliminate HBV infection as a public health threat by 2030. So far, we are far from this goal as vaccine implementation has been suboptimal in a number of important patient populations, including patients with rheumatologic diseases, as well as other immunocompromising diseases like HIV.

Rheumatology Physician Burnout and Depression

Save

The 2018 Medscape Physician Burnout and Depression report shows that 42% of physician respondents report "burnout" and up to 15% experience some sort of depression. In a survey of 15,543 doctors from 29 specialties, they found highest burnout rates in critical care and neurologists (48%), family medicine (47%), ob/gyns and internists (46%). Lowest rates were seen in pathology and dermatology (32%), and plastic surgery (23%). 

What did rheumatologists report?

Laparoscopic Gastric Sleeve Compared to Bypass Bariatric Surgery

Save

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. 

New Rise in Hip Fractures Amongst Women

Save

Reuters reports that the incidence of hip fractures in older women in the U.S. is rising after more than a decade of decline, according to a large new study of Medicare recipients.

Stroke Risk Confirmed in SLE

Save

The most common cerebrovascular events (CVEs) seen among a large cohort of patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) were stroke and transient ischemia, and the majority of these events were attributable to the disease itself, a multinational study determined.

B Cell Changes Predict Autoimmunity with Checkpoint Inhibitors

Save

The Journal of Clinical Investigation reports results of a study showing that increases in CD21lo B cells and plasmablasts following that combination checkpoint blockade preceded the onset of immune-related adverse events.

While some have postulated that IRAEs are thought to be T cell mediated, B cells have also been implicated. Investigators studied 39 melanoma patients undergoing treatment with either anti-CTLA4 or anti-PD1, or combination CCB therapy. They analyzed changes in circulating B cells before and after the first cycle of therapy of immune checkpoint blockade (23 received combination therapy, 8 received anti-CTLA4, and 8 received anti-PD1).

Ibuprofen’s Anti-androgenic Effect May Result in Hypogonadism in Males

Save

PNAS reports use of ibuprofen by males may result in antiandrogen effects that may contribute to adult male reproductive problems.

40% of Arthritis Patients Fail to Receive Exercise Guidance

Save

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

Small Joint Surgeries Drop Among RA Patients

Save

The rate of small - but not large - joint surgery has dropped among patients with rheumatoid arthritis since 1995, a retrospective review of orthopedic surgeries found. By 2015, less than 1% of patients per year underwent small joint surgery, reported Ashima Makol, MD, of the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, and colleagues in Arthritis Care & Research.