Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is an autoimmune disease with a propensity to develop glomerulonephritis (47-70%) or end-stage kidney disease despite therapy.

Combining denosumab (Prolia) with a conventional disease-modifying antirheumatic drug (DMARD) such as methotrexate showed promise for slowing radiographic damage in rheumatoid arthritis (RA), a manufacturer-sponsored phase III trial called DESIRABLE found.

Dr. Jack Cush reviews the latest journal articles and rheumatology news from the past week on RheumNow.com:

A comparative cohort study of patients with osteoarthritis (OA), gout, diabetic peripheral neuropathy (pDPN), post-herpetic neuralgia (PHN), and fibromyalgia (FM) shows that nonadherence to pain medications is high and leads to greater overall health care resource utilization and costs. 

Studies from a cohort of gout patients in Mexico shows that long-term goals of a target serum urate (sUA) 6 mg/dL and remission are rare, especially for those with severe gout.

Boston researchers have shown that consumption of fish rich in omega‐3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (n‐3 PUFA) leads to a lower risk of recurrent gout flares.

A national database reveals that patients with granulomatosis with polyangiitis (GPA) have 22.3% risk of hospital readmissions within 30 days of discharge. 

From a total of 9749 hospital admissions with GPA, there were 2173 readmissions within 30 days of discharge.

The American College of Rheumatology (ACR) and the Arthritis Foundation (AF) have released two guidelines on management of juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA).

Two weeks of antibiotic therapy was as effective as 4 weeks for septic arthritis, a prospective single-center study found.

Namilumab, a monoclonal antibody that targets the granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) ligand, showed promise as a treatment for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) in a phase II study.

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

A randomized controlled trial shows that chronic low-dose naproxen does not reduce progression of presymptomatic Alzheimer disease (AD).

The Annals of Internal Medicine reports a metanalysis done to examine the optimal length of long-term osteoporosis drug treatment (ODT) and whether harms are associated with long-term ODT and while the ODT benefits are clear, the risk of rare harms and need for drug holidays is less certain.&nbsp

AbbVie has announced that the US FDA has granted the approval of Skyrizi (risankizumab-rzaa) for the treatment of moderate to severe plaque psoriasis. 

A small prospective study has shown that ustekinumab is safe and effective in Behçet's disease (BD) with recurrent oral ulcers (OU).

In October 2018, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) convened a workshop to address the "Appropriate Use of Drug Therapies for Osteoporotic Fracture Prevention"

A longitudinal study of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) from the Toronto Lupus Clinic has shown that mortality has decreased over time.

Patients with RA, but without CV disease, who were treated with atorvastatin appeared to experience cardiovascular (CV) benefits similar to what has been observed in other populations, with a risk reduction of approximately one-third, according to a large, but prematurely terminated, trial in the

A panel of 10 sleep experts studied 20 common sleep myths and found little or no evidence in support of these beliefs.

Sleep issues are highly prevalent among US adults, but few admit to it or do anything to manage it. 

JAMA Dermatology reports that patients with hidradenitis suppurativa have significantly more comorbidities than do patients with psoriasis.