Dr. Jack Cush reviews highlights from the past week on RheumNow.com. 

Reginster and colleagues have reported on the results of the CONCEPT trial showing that osteoarthritis (OA) patients treated 800 mg/day of  pharmaceutical-grade chondroitin sulfate (CS) have less VAS pain scores and improved function over 6 months therapy. These results were superior to placebo and equivalent to celecoxib in reducing in symptomatic OA knee pain.

Ohio is suing five major drug manufacturers, accusing them of misrepresenting the risks of prescription opioid painkillers that has resulted in the current opioid epidemic.

The British Society for Rheumatology/British Health Professionals in Rheumatology first published a guideline for the management of gout in 2007. They have just updated and published their new guideline, largely because of new therapies, an increasing incidence of gout, low penetrance of urate lowering therapies, and the inability to achieve a target serum uric acid level.

Stepping up to biologic therapy when methotrexate (MTX) monotherapy fails was not shown to be cost effective, compared to first trying triple therapy, in a rheumatoid arthritis (RA) study published in Annals of Internal Medicine.

Dr. Jack Cush Reviews highlights from the past week on RheumNow.com:

About one-third of ankylosing spondylitis patients who cut their etanercept (Enbrel) dose in half maintained responses over 4 years, compared with two-thirds who stayed on standard therapy, researchers reported.

Ixekizumab (Taltz) is currently approved for use in plaque psoriasis and is being developed for use in psoriatic arthritis (PsA). New results show IXE to be highly effective at skin and joint outcomes in PsA patients who have failed a TNF inhibitor (TNFi).

The NEJM reports success when using mepolizumab (anti-IL-5 monoclonal antibody) in a 52 week study of patients with eosinophilic granulomatosis with polyangiitis (EGPA).

The FDA has approved subcutaneous tocilizumab for use in Giant Cell Arteritis based on the phase III GiACTA study that demonstrated that TCZ with steroids was superior to steroid therapy alone.

The FDA has approved sarilumab (Kevzara), a new IL-6 inhibitor co-developed by Regeneron and Sanofi's, for use in adults with moderate to severe rheumatoid arthritis (RA).

Reuters reports that FDA approval of romosozumab (brand name Evenity) may be held up because of higher rates of cardiac events seen in a late-stage clinical trial.

The DANBIO registrys has demonstrated that switching from infliximab (Remicade) to biosimilar CT-P13 (Inflectra in the U.S., Remsima in Europe) does not appear to have any negative effect on inflammatory arthritis disease activity, Danish researchers reported.

Lancet reports the results of the NOR-SWITCH study - a trial performed in Norway as biosimilars were being introduced.

A retrospective study shows that rituximab treatment of RA-related interstitial lung disease may improve or forestall ILD progression.

Dr. Jack Cush highlights the big stories, news and articles from this week at RheumNow.com.

Adalimumab is currently FDA approved for use in adult psoriasis, pediatric Crohn's disease and polyarticular juvenile idiopathic arthritis.  The current Lancet trial assesses the efficacy and safety of adalimumab in children and adolescents with severe plaque psoriasis.

Using data from Canadian and European healthcare databases, the BMJ has reported that all NSAIDs, including celecoxib and naproxen, increase the risk of acute myocardial infarction.

One-third of newly approved drugs in the next decade will require new safety warnings based on pharmacovigilance, according to a new study in JAMA. (Citation Source: http://buff.ly/2r3dYUs)

Mortality remains high in patients with the types of vasculitis that are associated with the presence of antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibodies (ANCA), a meta-analysis in Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases determined.