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ACR 2016 – Day 2 Highlights
Big highlights from Monday included the Hench Lecture, plenary session abstracts and presentations on drug safety and cost efficacy in rheumatoid arthritis.
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Herpes Zoster and Giant Cell Arteritis
The potential association of herpes zoster with giant cell arteritis (GCA) has been a debated topic and certainly has gotten some attention at ACR 2016 this year.
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MACRA: Not Just an Acronym Inside an Acronym
Education on MACRA is the key to successful survival. The important take home points noted in Dr. Will Harvey’s lecture at ACR 2016 (session title: Holy MACRA! How to Survive and Thrive in the New Era of MACRA, MIPS, and APMs) are stated below.
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Two New Biologics for Polyarticular JIA
On Monday, November 13, there were two new presentations at the annual ACR 2016 meeting on new biologics seeking approval for use in polyarticular juvenile arthritis.
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SPIRIT P1 Study - Ixekinumab Sustains Efficacy at 52 Weeks in Psoriatic Arthritis
Ixekinumab (IXE) is an IGG4 monoclonal antibody bindings with high affinity to IL -17A. Currently marketed at Taltz and approved for use in chronic plaque psoriasis, the agent is also being developed for use in psoriatic arthritis.
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The ACR 2016 Playbook
For me and many others, this is the Super Bowl of meetings. I haven’t missed an ACR meeting since I started going as a fellow in 1984. In this span of 30 years I have acquired insights on how to navigate such a big meeting. When I say big, I mean over 14,000 attendees from over 100 countries swarming throughout a convention center that has the elements of the Texas state fair, a gigantic Costco (on Saturday), and a sold-out concert.
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The Long Awaited PRECISION Study
The PRECISION study will be presented on Tuesday, November 15, 2016 by Dr. Elaine Husni from the Cleveland Clinic. This report brings to a climax the controversy ignited by the February 2005 3 day FDA Arthritis Advisory Committee review of the safety of the blockbuster COX-2 inhibitors, celecoxib, rofecoxib, and valdecoxib.
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Creaky Joints Presentations at the ACR16 Meeting
CreakyJoints will be presenting 5 Posters at the 2016 ACR/AHRP Annual Meeting. At the meeting they will also announce the publication of first-ever Rheumatoid Arthritis Patient Guidelines.
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10 Tips for Immunization in Practice
Dr. Jerome Greenberg from UCLA has published 10 tips and pearls (based on years of teaching and experience) on immunizations in an out-patient practice:
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Agressive Early Treatment Prevents Rapid Bone Loss in Rheumatoid Arthritis
The International Osteoporosis Foundation has established the Chronic Inflammation and Bone Structure (CIBS) Working Group to address bone loss in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and the role of biologic therapies. They conclude that early and aggressive treatment with biologic disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs will help prevent progressive bone loss in patients with RA.
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Do Statins Reduce Cardiovascular Disease in Rheumatoid Arthritis?
RA increases CV risk considerably. But whose responsibility is it to manage CV risk in RA patients?
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Flu Shot for Egg-Allergic Patients – What to Do?
Flu season is upon us. While we try our best to vaccinate as many patients as possible, at times it can be challenging for reasons ranging from patient’s perceptions that the vaccine gives them the flu to others stating they are allergic to vaccine components.
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RheumNow Week in Review – 4 November 2016
Dr. Jack Cush reviews highlights and reports from this week on RheumNow.com, including drug-induced cutaneous lupus, pediatric lupus being worse, new gout drug SEL-12, Gut microbiome and IgA plasmablasts, and the weakly-received new ACP guidelines on gout.
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Opioids are Like Guns in the Hands of Children
The opioid abuse epidemic is well known and the focus of many regulators and health care personnel. The problem also affects the youngest Americans, according to a recent Washington Post article.
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ACP Gout Guidelines Reviewed and Critiqued by Rheumatologists
ACP released clinical practice guidelines for the diagnosis and management of gout. Interestingly, these are not always aligned with the 2012 ACR gout guidelines.
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When Cheap Generics Morph Into Expensive Prescriptions
The Wall Street Journal has reported an alarming trend in generic drug pricing that affects many, especially the elderly and those with arthrtis.
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Prevalence of Inflammatory Bowel Disease Increases
The MMWR has reported that Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis, collectively known as inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), previously (1999) had an estimated 1.8 million (0.9%) prevalence. But as of 2015, an estimated 3.1 million (1.3%) of U.S.
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Is There a Familial Risk to Scleroderma?
Using population based data, researchers found a 10 fold increase prevalence of SSc in first degree relatives. That equates to a relative risk of 81. Genetic factors appear to be important in the risk for scleroderma.
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POSTURE Study: Apremilast Fails in Ankylosing Spondylitis
ClinicalTrials.gov has listed the results of the POSTURE study, a large randomized placebo-controlled trial wherein apremilast was found to yield no benefit (compared to placebo) in treating ankylosing spondylitis (AS) (32.5% vs. 36.6% ASAS20 at week 16) patients.
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ACP Guidelines on the Diagnosis and Treatment of Low Back Pain
Low back pain (LBP) is the fifth most common reason for all physician visits in the United States and nearly 25% of all U.S. adults have had LBP in the last 3 months and nearly 6% reported at least 1 episode of severe acute low back pain in the last 1-year.
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