RheumNow Live (RNL) for 2021 was held March 20 - 21 in Fort Worth, TX, and now all can partake in the meeting - by video, podcast or by signing up for Tuesday Nite Rheumatology (TNR).

The U.S.

NSAIDs do not affect COVID outcomes; here we are nearly 16 months into the pandemic, and this is the common sense conclusion of a recent trial published in Lancet Rheumatology.

An oral microbiome study of rheumatoid arthritis patients suggests that periodontal condition in patients with early rheumatoid arthritis and individuals at risk of RA.

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

The ACR COVID-19 Vaccine Clinical Guidance was originally published on February 8, 2021 and updated on March 4, 2021. On April 28, 2021, new recommendations were added regarding mycophenolate, methotrexate, acetaminophen, and NSAID timing considerations,  

Herpes zoster reactivation -- a.k.a. shingles -- following COVID-19 vaccination in six patients with comorbid autoimmune/inflammatory diseases may be a new adverse event associated with the Pfizer/BioNTech mRNA vaccine, suggested a new report.

Dr. Jack Cush serves up this week's news and articles from RheumNow.com.

MMWR reports the risk of acquiring an infection with SARS-CoV-2 is reduced 23% to 57% when the middle seat was vacant (compared with full aircraft occupancy).

A population-based study in the UK shows that patients with rare autoimmune rheumatic diseases (RAIRD) were 44% more likely to die during the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic (March - April) compared to either the general population or their pre-COVID risk.

A full year from the onset of the SARS-COV-2 pandemic, rheumatologists are still seeing the consequences of COVID, with many patients avoiding usual care, follow-up visits, routine lab testing and with many self-stopping their antirheumatic meds, because it seemed like the right thing to do.

Dr Jack Cush gives his spin on this week's RheumNews and Rheum Research from RheumNow.com.

A survey study from the  ArthritisPower PPRN or CreakyJoints database shows that during the COVID-19 pandemic patient care was substantially affected in unforeseen ways.

JAMA has published the real-world reporting of mRNA vaccine side effects (reactogenicity) gathered from CDC V-safe Surveillance system and shows that local and systemic reactions were often mild and transient and most commonly seen during the first day following their second dose.

The Spondyloarthritis Advances pod presented during the RheumNow Live 2021 conference featured three speakers, including an excellent lecture by Dr. Robert Wang, ophthalmology, on HLA B27 iritis and practical tips for rheumatologists. 

Serious infections occurred more frequently among patients with anti-neutrophil cytoplasmic antibody (ANCA)-associated vasculitis who were given induction therapy with cyclophosphamide compared with rituximab (Rituxan), Greek researchers found.

While rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is not known to affect the liver directly, underlying liver disease and treatment-related effects on the liver can often become an obstacle in the management of many RA patients. In his Sunday presentation at RNL2021, Dr.

Patients with rheumatic diseases who developed COVID-19 were at increased likelihood of death, with risk factors similar to those seen in the general population but also because of factors specific to their underlying disease and its treatment, analysis of data from an international registry foun