Kallikrein Inhibitor Lanadelumab Prevents Hereditary Angioedema Attacks

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Hereditary angioedema is a rare autosomal dominant disorder due to C1 inhibitor deficiency (type I) or dysfunction (type II) that leads to dysregulated plasma kallikrein activity, excess bradykinin production, and unpredictable potentially life-threatening recurrent angioedema attacks.

FDA Approves Biosimilar Rituximab for NHL, not RA

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The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday approved Celltrion biosimilar of rituximab called Truxima; previously called CT-P10, now generically labeled as rituximab-abbs. This is the first biosimilar to the Rituxan currently approved to treat non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Truxima is not approved for use in rheumatoid arthritis, vasculitis, pemphigus vulgaris or chronic lymphocytic leukemia.

Steroid Injection Superior to Splinting in Carpal Tunnel Syndrome

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Lancet has published a comparative effectiveness study examining the the value of night splints (conservative treatment) vs local injection for patients with carpal tunnel syndrome.

Low Risk of Serious Complications with Meniscectomy

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Lancet reports on the safety of over 1 million arthroscopic partial meniscectomies done in the United Kingdom and found a low overall risk in the first 90 days.

They examined Hospital Episode Statistics on  1,088,782 arthroscopic partial meniscectomies (1997-2017); 699 965 of which were eligible for analysis. They sought to identify complications occurring in the 90 days after the index procedure.

Growing Tick Population Comes with Health Concerns

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CNN has published a recent government report from the Tick-Borne Disease Working Group that suggests the US tick population is growing and may bring with it an increase in tick-related illnesses. 

Chikungunya Virus Vaccine Developed

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Lancet reports on a new vaccine for Chikungunya fever (MV-CHIK) demonstraing excellent safety, tolerability and good immunogenicity, independent of pre-existing immunity against the vector. MV-CHIK is a promising vaccine for the prevention of chikungunya fever.

Subclinical Heart Inflammation Seen in RA

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Subclinical myocardial inflammation is common among patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and is associated with articular disease activity, researchers reported.

CIRT Trial - Methotrexate Fails at Cardiovascular Prevention

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Methotrexate has been shown to reduce cardiovascular (CV) deaths in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients. Given that inflammation underlies the pathogenesis of atherothrombosis, Dr. Paul Ridker and colleagues studied the value of low dose methotrexate (MTX) in preventing cardiovascular events.

RheumNow Weekly Podcast – 3 Wiseguy Rheumatologists (11.9.18)

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Dr Jack Cush reviews the News and Journal reports from the past week on RheumNow.com.  Be sure to check out our upcoming meeting in March 2019 - RheumNow Live.

Should Immunoglobulins be Monitored with Rituximab Use?

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Boston researchers have found that in a large cohort study of patients receiving rituximab (RTX), most were not being monitored for hypogammaglobulinemia, despite the observed significant increase in severe infections and increased mortality in RTX treated patients.

Controversial New Super Opioid Approved by FDA

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Amidst a new DEA report demonstrating a record number of opioid overdose deaths (n-72,000 or ~ 200 deaths per day), the FDA has approved a newer and far more potent opioid than those that are currently being abused at alarming rates. The new agent is named Dsuvia.

Late Breaker: Can Tanezumab Be Revived for OA?

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The monoclonal antibody tanezumab, which blocks nerve growth factor, showed significant benefits in pain and function among patients with osteoarthritis (OA) of the knee or hip, and rates of severe adverse joint events such as rapidly progressive OA that had plagued earlier studies were low, a re

A New Era? JAK inhibitors in the Management of RA

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ACR 2018 has come and gone. It was a conference filled with a number of highlights. One thing from this conference which really stood out was the continued plethora of data on JAK inhibitors. First in RA, and now in psoriatic arthritis and psoriasis.

Spotlight on Interstitial Lung Disease at ACR 2018

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Here are a few important advances in our understanding of interstitial lung disease (ILD) from the ACR 2018 meeting last week.

Imaging Reveals Anatomical Focus of Inflammation in PMR

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Two studies presented at ACR18 have used imaging to examine one of the key unanswered questions in polymyalgia rheumatica - what structures are the focus of inflammation in the disease – and demonstrated that peritendineal involvement is ubiquitous in and distinctive of PMR.

RheumNow ACR Week in Review: ACR Wrap-Up (10.26.18)

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This past week in Chicago gave us a plethora of new and eye-opening research, people, KOLs, exhibits, sessions, guidelines, posters and a never-ending supply of coffee served in small paper cups.  ACR 2018 highlights for me included:

ACR 2018 - Day 4 Report

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Highlights from Tuesday and Wednesday (days 3 and 4) from the ACR annual meeting include: the important and impactful abstracts covered by the Rheumatology Roundup session; upadacitinib clinical trials; and the baricitinib CV and VTE safety analysis.

Hydroxychloroquine Dosing: the Great Debate

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Rheumatologists tend to be a conservative bunch of people. We’re law abiding and we (mostly) follow guidelines. Which is fine when they are in the best interests of our patients, but what do we do when we fundamentally disagree?

Is DAS28 and HAQ-DI Headed for the Graveyard?

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Dr. Joseph Smolen delivered one of the most elegant and informative talk on rheumatoid arthritis at this ACR’s meeting as a tribute to Dr. Paul Klemperer. Dr. Smolen led us on a journey, and had us feeling content with what we are doing in practice as we walked with him from historical discoveries of RA through new drug development. Then Dr. Smolen did the unthinkable: he made us crash!

Emerging Trends in the Treatment of Rheumatoid Arthritis

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