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HLA-B*5801 Testing Needed in Asians and Blacks with Gout
Choi and colleagues analyzed US hospitalizations (2009–2013) to assess the frequency and racial distribution of patients hospitalized with Stevens-Johnson Syndrome (SJS) and Toxic Epidermal Necrolysis (TEN) related to the use of urate-lowering (ULT) therapy (predominantly allopurinol).
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RheumNow Week in Review - 8 April 2016
Dr. Jack Cush reviews the rheumatology highlights from the news, media, and journals from this past week:
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Choosing ANA Tests Wisely - Education Fosters Smarter Use
It is estimated that 21% of laboratory tests are requested inappropriately. Researchers have explored the impact of educational programs for rheumatologists working at three rheumatology departments in secondary and tertiary care centers in The Netherlands.
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Hemochromatosis Reviewed
Powell et al have published in Lancet a review of hemochromatosis; its genetics, pathogenesis, clinical manifestations and management.
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Novel Protein as a Potential Autoantigen in JIA
Juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) is clearly not related to rheumatoid arthritis and until recently has no identifiabile autoantigen linked to JIA.
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Febuxostat Safe in Gout with Moderate-Severe Renal Impairment
Renal impairment is a risk factor for gout and a barrier to optimal gout management. Many of the drugs used to treat gout require adjustment in those with renal disease.
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CBC Hidden Pearls
CBC…it’s easy as 123! The complete blood count (aka, CBC) is the most routine, but indispensable, of all medical assessments.
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Lupus Flares After Renal Transplant
Whether lupus activity is ameliorated by end-stage renal disease (ESRD) or transplantation has been debated.
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High 14-3-3η Levels Have Predictive Value in Early Inflammatory Arthritis
14-3-3η is a new serum assay that has utility in diagnosing and treating patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and early inflammatory arthritis (EIA).
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ANA Negative Lupus Nephritis - Does it Exist?
A recent report from the Mayo Clinic describes a 49 year-old patient with lupus nephritis who presented with new-onset hypertension, edema, arthritis, serositis and leukocytoclastic vasculitis, and who later developed glomerulonephritis and nephrotic syndrome.
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Ominous Outcomes for Lupus Nephritis
Hanly and coworkers have reported the results of a large lupus cohort study involving 1827 patients. SLE patients were enrolled early in their disease (0.5 years) and were followed for a mean of 4.6 years.
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Lesinurad augments uric acid lowering effect in allopurinol non-responders
As the never-ending battle with refractory gout continues, the need for more safe and effective treatments remains. Often, steady remission and target urate levels are not achieved with allopurinol alone.
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Seropositivity Increases Risk of Rheumatoid Mortality
Three European registries analyzed their cohorts for outcomes that may be related to seropositivity for anticitrullinated protein antibodies (ACPA), rheumatoid factor (RF) and anticarbamylated protein (anti-CarP) antibodies.
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New Scoring System Predicts 1 year survival in Hip Fracture Patients
A prospective study was conducted in Germany to establish predictors of 1 year survival after a hip fracture in elderly people.
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DSB: Managing Methotrexate Toxicity (Best of 2015: #1)
Methotrexate was first introduced in 1955 for leukemia and in 1986 became FDA approved for the treatment of adults with severe, active, rheumatoid arthritis or children with active polyarticular-course juvenile RA.
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Can Gout and Rheumatoid Arthritis Coexist?
German investigators studied 100 RA patients with a uric acid > 6 mg/dl and assessed them for MSU crystal deposit with dual energy computed tomography (DECT) of both feet and hands.
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Plasmacytoid Dendritic Cells Influences Early, But Not Established Lupus
The Journal of Immunology has published the findings of Virginia Tech researchers who have studied plasmacytoid dendritic cells and their ability to induce type I alpha interferon (IFN-α) in lupus. (Citation source: http://buff.ly/1MceeCl)
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Skin Cancer Risk in ANCA+ Vasculitis
Previously, granulomatous polyangitis (GPA or Wegener's) was known to have an increase risk of cancer, especially bladder cancer, presumeably due to cyclophosphamide (CTX) exposure.
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Microvesicles May Ameliorate Arthritis Damage
Microvesicles are emerging as a new mechanism of intercellular communication by transferring cellular lipid and protein components to target cells, yet their function in disease is only now being explored.
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