Weight loss is one of several nonpharmaceutical interventions to reduce serum urate (SUA) levels and control gout. French researchers examined the role of xanthine oxidase (XO), low-grade inflammation, and weight loss on SUA levels in obese patients.

The 2015 ACR meeting in San Francisco highlighted several studies wherein dietary patterns predicted a reduced risk of both rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and gout.

Lancet reports the results of a randomized controlled trial comparing prednisone alone to prednisone combined with either methotrexate (MTX) or cyclosporine (CyA) in new-onset juvenile dermatomyositis (JDM).

Researchers at the University of California at San Francisco have shown that >10% weight loss may impact the rate of cartilage loss as determined by MRI scanning.  They presented their findings yesterday at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA). 

The following is a collection of cases presented to me by my colleagues in Canada during a day of workshop case discussions among clinical consultants. Each case is presented because of a challenging therapeutic issue.

Containment of health care costs was a primary goal of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. But there is little evidence of success in curbing the rising price of prescription drugs. As such, many medications are unaffordable to those who need them.

Brouwer and colleagues from the University Medical Center Rotterdam in The Netherlands have studied the issue of infertility in a cohort of RA patients followed prospectively.

The American College of Physicians (ACP) says that prescribing generic medications whenever possible can improve adherence to therapy, improve outcomes, and reduce costs for patients and the health care system. ACP’s best practice advice paper is published in Annals of Internal Medicine.

The following is a compilation of abstracts presented at the 2015 Annual ACR meeting in San Francisco. These were chosen on the basis of impact, quality and safety message.

While new recommendations suggest early aggressive management of rheumatoid arthritis, our ability to assess treatment response is limited to clinical and laboratory assessment.

Reuters today reported that a copy of the blockbuster biotech drug Enbrel (SB4) was recommended for approval in Europe on Friday, making it the second so-called biosimilar antibody medicine to win such a green light from the continent's regulators.

MedPage Today reports that the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has issued a final rule governing payment for hip and knee replacements for Medicare patients this week that includes several concessions to stakeholders, such as delaying implementation from early 2016 to later in

The American Medical Association has called for a ban on direct-to-consumer (DTC) advertising for prescription drugs and medical devices, noting these forms of advertising drive up health care costs and often mislead the public.

A biosimilar of etanercept (Enbrel) made by the South Korean company Samsung Bioepis is under consideration by regulators in the European Union. Samsung Bioepis, a joint venture between Samsung Biologics and Biogen, is taking aim with its version of etanercept.

What are your rules on methotrexate and alcohol use? How about casual, social or occasional alcohol use? If one alcoholic beverage is ok, what about 2, 3 or six while taking MTX?

Giant cell arteritis (GCA) is a medium and large vasculitis, wherein only glucocorticoids (GC) treatment has been the mainstay of therapy. As many will require prolonged treatment, the hazards of GC are well known, lead to substantial toxicity and morbidity.

Sepsis is a dangerous and potentially fatal consequence of serious infections (SIE), particularly in susceptible populations such as the elderly and immunosuppressed. Published evidence points toward the potential role of TNF in development of sepsis.

A thoughtful perspective on the purpose, focus and cost of guideline efforts in rheumatology has been published in the journal Rheumatology.

Reuters and the Wall Street Journal have reported that the largest U.S. pharmacy benefit managers (PBM) of private prescription drug benefits have cut off at least eight pharmacies that work closely with drugmakers, intensifying scrutiny of a system that helps inflate drug prices.

Psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis patient have significantly higher rates of comorbidity, including hypertension (HTN). This population-based, nested case–control study analyzed an inception psoriasis cohort from Taiwan's National Health Insurance Research Database between 2000–2010.