Obesity Needs to be Treated in Psoriatic Arthritis

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Obese patients with psoriatic arthritis (PsA) who followed a short-term, very low-energy diet showed improvements in multiple aspects of disease activity, a prospective study found.

Major Challenges for Lupus in 2019

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Despite striking improvements in survival among patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) in recent decades -- from 1-year survival of less than 50% before the introduction of prednisone to 90% today in most specialized treatment centers -- many challenges remain in this perplexing, multis

2019: the Year of Price Hikes

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In 2019 there have been numerous reports of higher drug pricing for many drugs.  Yesterday it was reported that the price of insulin drugs have more than doubled from 2012 to 2016.

Smoking Doesn't Influence Rituximab Responses in Rheumatoid Arthritis

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Alcohol, smoking and obesity have all been shown to influence the risk and activity of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and may also influence response to therapy. This study assesssed whether smoking would influence response to rituximab (RTX) in RA. 

U.S. Gout Rates Remain Steady, but Substantial

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Using data from 5,467 adults in the US in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) for the years 2007-2016, researchers found that the prevalence of gout and hyperuricemia has remained at 3.9%, having doubled from the 1960s to the 1990s, corresponding to an estimated 9.2 mill

Does Methotrexate Work in Giant Cell Arteritis?

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There seems to be both hope and uncertainty regarding the use of weekly methotrexate (MTX) in giant cell arteritis (GCA) patients whom need to limit their glucocorticoid use.

FDA Panel Backs Approval of Romosuzumab for Osteoporosis

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The US Food and Drug Administration’s advisory committee on Bone, Reproductive and Urologic Drugs voted Wednesday in favor of approving Amgen’s osteoporosis anti-sclerostin drug, romosozumab (Evenity) for use women with postmenopausal osteoporosis. 

Anakinra for Acute Crystal-Induced Arthritis

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A retrospective analysis of hospitalized patients who also had a gout and pseudogout attack shows that injections of anakinra (interleukin-1 receptor antagonist) were highly effective and safe in nearly three-quarters of patients.  

IL-6 Blocker Succeeds in Real-World Vasculitis

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Tocilizumab (Actemra) was effective for refractory giant cell arteritis (GCA) in real-world practice, although serious infections occurred relatively frequently, Spanish investigators reported.

Diet and Weight Loss Improves Psoriatic Arthritis

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Short-term intervention with the very low energy diet (VLED) in psoriatic arthritis (PsA) with obesity (body mass index BMI ≥ 33 kg/m2) showed that weight loss was associated with significant positive benefits on weight and disease activity in joints, entheses and skin. 

Opioids Double Rates of Suicides and Overdoses

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An article in the New England Journal of Medicine reports that the rates of suicide and drug overdoses has doubled in the last 17 years, and that opioids are largely to blame.

2018 Rheumatology Year In Review

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This annual appraisal of hallmark moments, news and research articles from 2018 are gleaned from that published in RheumNow during the last year and filtered by other news sources and literature review.  The top 10 list herein is rooted in what rheumatologists should know and what will likel

Severe Cutaneous Sarcoid Treated with Tofacitinib

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Researchers from Yale have taken a novel approach and shown benefits when using tofacitinib in severe cutaneous sarcoidosis.

Best of 2018: The Safety of Paternal Exposure to DMARDs and Biologics

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Pregnancy and drug safety is a complex issue, often with limited information about maternal drug exposure on the offspring. Greater uncertainty exists when considering whether paternal exposure may also influence fetal outcomes.

Best of 2018: Hydroxychloroquine Being Over-Dosed with New Guidelines?

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Hydroxychloroquine retinopathy prevention guidelines have revised from ideal body weight-based dosing to actual body weight-based dosing; the question remains whether these have been adopted in clinical practice.

A database of nearly 21,000 new HCQ users from a UK general population database studied HCQ dosing and use between 2007 and 2016. Specifically they examined whether users were subjected to excess HCQ dosing per ophthalmology guidelines (defined by exceeding 6.5 mg/kg of IBW and 5.0 mg/kg of ABW).

Best of 2018: Patients May Not Fill Your Prescription

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A new study linking administrative claims and electronic health records (EHRs) shows that nearly 40% of patients fill and take newly prescribed methotrexate (MTX), tofacitinib or biologics. 

Kan et al set out to estimate the extent and predictors of primary nonadherence in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients who received new prescriptions for methotrexate, biologics or tofacitinib.

Best of 2018: Ustekinumab May be Effective in Lupus

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Ronald F van Vollenhoven and colleagues have reported in Lancet that ustekinumab (UST), an interleukin-12 and -23 inhibitor, when added to usual therapy in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) patients, was shown to be superior to placebo at improving clinical efficacy and laboratory param

Best of 2018: Unproven But Profitable Stem Cell Clinics

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Stem cell clinics are popular and proliferating as they are largely a cash business and fall outside of FDA regulatory control. In lieu of scientific proof, most advocates use patient testimonials and the placebo effect to back up their claims.

RheumNow Podcast – Rheumatologist Salaries (12.21.18)

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Dr. Jack Cush reviews the news from RheumNow for the week ending 12/21/18.

Zolendronate Protects Against Fracture in Osteopenia

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The NEJM reports that the use of zoledronate significantly reduces the risk of nonvertebral or vertebral fragility fractures in women with osteopenia.