Gabapentin use jumped quickly in Michigan after the drug was removed from the state's controlled substance schedule in 2024, a cross-sectional study showed.

A real world analysis of drug use in giant cell arteritis (GCA) patients shows that despite intending to taper patients off glucocorticoids (GC) by 24 months, 75% remained on GCs for ≥ 48 months.

The Endocrine Society has published a scientific statement reframing obesity as a heterogeneous, chronically dysregulated fat-mass disorder, the biology of which is being tested effectively by GLP-1/GIP receptor agonists. Is this precision-medicine? We await long-term safety data, while assessing the outcomes in rheumatic and musculoskeletal disorders.

As GLP-1/GIP receptor agonists become standard co-management tools for obese patients with RA, PsA, axSpA, and gout, this JAMA Insights perspective by Kushner, et al. reframes lifestyle counseling as an adjunct to pharmacotherapy - a reversal of the traditional model. This has with direct implications for how we counsel obese patients we start or co-manage on these agents.

Dr. Jack Cush reviews the news and journal reports from this past week on RheumNow.com

The American College of Rheumatology (ACR) has released updated clinical guidance for the treatment and management of osteoarthritis (OA) of the knee, hip, and hand. The evidence-based recommendations update the 2019 ACR/Arthritis Foundation guideline and are designed to support individualized, shared decision-making between patients and clinicians.

HLA-B27 remains the dominant genetic link to spondyloarthritis (SpA) across the age spectrum, but B27 related clinical expression diverges between children and adults. New mechanistic data on autoreactive T cells, HLA-B27 misfolding, and gut-joint trafficking point to new plausible, targetable pathways.

An outcomes study from the Leiden Early Arthritis Clinic (EAC) has shown substantially less diagnostic delay and better long-term outcomes when patients are referred to EAC compared to usual referrals.

Even before the introduction of incretin therapy and bariatric surgery, many randomized and interventional studies (2019–2026) have consistently showed that weight loss produces clinically meaningful, dose-dependent improvement in both psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis.

Dr. Jack Cush reviews the news and journal reports from this past week on Rheumnow.com - including obesity, disappointing durability with GLP-1 drugs, AI diagnoses and worries about CV risk in ANCA-associated vasculitis. And take this week's RheumIQ quiz!

Smolen, Kerschbaumer, Aletaha, and Robinson have published a comprehensive review article of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) in JAMA, noting significant changes to our understanding and treatment guidelines.