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19% Arthritis Prevalence in the USA
According to the National Health Interview Survey (NHIS), in 2022, the prevalence of diagnosed arthritis in adults was 18.9% (women 21.5%, more than men 16.1%). These numbers are down since the CDC's MMWR report of 2019–2021, where is was estimated 21.2% of U.S.
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Sniffles & Arthritis (3.1.2024)
Dr. Jack Cush reviews the news and journal reports from the past week on RheumNow.com. Are these associations with infection, biomarkers and weather real or imaginary? Linked or luck? Causal or casual? You decide....
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Polyarteritis Nodosa: Clinical Features and Outcomes
A multinational study of polyarteritis nodosa (PAN) through the international GLOBAL-PAN network shows PAN to be a complex, multisystem disorder with a high risk of relapse and low risk of death (11% at 10 years).
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EGPA: Benralizumab or Mepolizumab
A multicenter, double-blind, phase 3, randomized, active-controlled trial has shown that Benralizumab (BEN) was noninferior to mepolizumab (MEP) for the induction of remission of patients with relapsing or refractory Eosinophilic granulomatosis with polyangiitis (EGPA).
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Behçet’s Syndrome
A comprehensive overview of Behcet's syndrome appeared in last week's NEJM, reviewing the numerous advances in the immunogenetics, syndrome recognition, and targeted therapeutic approaches.
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Immunosuppression Increasing (2.23.2024)
Dr. Jack Cush reviews the news and journal reports from the past 2 weeks on RheumNow.com; but begins with a discussion of what constitutes "immunosuppression" and how it applies to our patients.
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CD19 CAR T-Cell Therapy in Autoimmune Disease
The NEJM has published the results of CD19 B cell depletion (by CAR-T cell therapy) in autoimmune disease patients, demonstrating it to be feasible, safe, and efficacious.
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Curbside Consults (2.16.2024)
Dr. Jack Cush answers audience clinical case questions sent by email or "ask Cush anything". Cases and questions from:
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VITAL Info on Autoimmune Disease (2.9.2024)
Dr. Jack Cush reviews the journal reports from the past week on RheumNow.com. Highlights are summarized by three songs: "Stairway to Heaven", "You're No Good", and "How Long (has this been going on)".
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Inflammatory Arthritis in Systemic Sclerosis is Problematic
Inflammatory arthritis (IA) is a common manifestation in systemic sclerosis (SSc), affecting nearly one-third of patients.
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Autoimmune disease and pregnancy
For many aspiring mothers with autoimmune disease, pregnancy can be daunting and full of unknowns. In some cases, those suffering from specific autoimmune conditions have chosen to forego pregnancy altogether due to concerns about their disease treatments and adverse pregnancy outcomes.
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SeXXist Reason for More Women with Autoimmune Disease
Somewhere between 24 and 50 million Americans have an autoimmune disease, a condition in which the immune system attacks our own tissues. As many as 4 out of 5 of those people are women.
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Severe Hypocalcemia Risk with Denosumab and CKD Patients
On 1-19-2024, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a Drug Safety Communication about the risk of severe hypocalcemia in chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients taking denosumab for osteoporosis, with an accentuated risk in older women who are dialysis-dependent.
This report is an update to their November 2022 investigation, the results of a related study being recently reported in JAMA.
Rituximab Efficacy in MAINRITSAN Long-Term Studies
The original randomized controlled, prospective MAINRITSAN study of 115 patients (87 with granulomatosis with polyangiitis, 23 with microscopic polyangiitis, and 5 with renal-limited ANCA-associated vasculitis [AAV]) demonstrated superiority of rituximab (RTX) over azathioprine (AZA) for maintenance of remission at 22 months in ANCA-associated vasculitis patients after CYC remission induction.
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Tic-Borne Disorders Causing Chronic Arthritis?
Findings from a population based cross-sectional study suggests that while up to 20% of patients have antibodies to tick-borne exposures, only a minority reported musculoskeletal symptoms.
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2023 Rheumatology Year in Review
Dr. Jack Cush reviews highlights, advances and hot topics in rheumatology from 2023 and the RheumNow website.
2023 was a year of growth and new horizons while returning to operational and practice standards (in care and education) established before the pandemic.
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Drug-Induced Dermatomyositis
A JAMA Dermatology systematic review of drug-induced dermatomyositis (DM) found the most commonly implicated agents include hydroxyurea, immune checkpoint inhibitors, statins and lipid-lowering agents, penicillamine, and tumor necrosis factor inhibitors.
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2023 Rheumatology Year in Review
Here is my top 10 list (in no particular order) of 2023 advances, game-changers, and developments that changed, or will soon change, rheumatologic practices.
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Best of 2023: Treatment and Management of Neuropsychiatric Lupus
At the 2023 ACR State of the Art conference in Orlando, Florida, Dr. Michelle Petri reviewed the treatment and management of neuropsychiatric lupus. Dr. Petri, a lupus expert from Johns Hopkins Rheumatology, reviewed the latest clinical and animal model studies that offer hope in treatment and gave wide-ranging pearls on a variety of issues that can be faced in this disorder.
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StillsNow Podcast December 2023 - ACR23 Highlights
Dr. Jack Cush reviews selected AOSD & systemic JIA abstracts from the ACR 2023 Annual meeting held in San Diego, November 12th thru 16th.
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