Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is an autoimmune disease with a propensity to develop glomerulonephritis (47-70%) or end-stage kidney disease despite therapy.

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

Patients with RA, but without CV disease, who were treated with atorvastatin appeared to experience cardiovascular (CV) benefits similar to what has been observed in other populations, with a risk reduction of approximately one-third, according to a large, but prematurely terminated, trial in the

The goal of SLE treatment is remission or low disease activity and flare prevention. Hydroxychloroquine is recommended in all patients with lupus, at a dose not exceeding 5 mg/kg real body weight. Glucocorticoids (GC) should be minimised to less than 7.5 mg/day (prednisone equivalent). Appropriate initiation of immunomodulatory agents (methotrexate, azathioprine, mycophenolate) can be tailored to the clinical scenarios and may allow for tapering or discontinuation of GC.

The advent of "big data" and "-omics" technologies offers hope that clinicians will soon have better diagnostics for systemic lupus erythematosus, rheumatologists here were told.

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

What clinical features best identify early systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) patients from mimics?  A multicenter, multinational study aimed to evaluate manifestations at disease onset and to compare early SLE manifestations to those of diseases mimicking SLE.

The JAAD has published joint guidelines from the American Academy of Dermatology (AAD) and National Psoriasis Foundation (NPF) on the approach, management and dermatolgist roles for select comorbid conditions. 

Dr. Jack Cush discusses the news from the past week on RheumNow.com - including the SEAM trial, MRI guided T2T, biologics and infection, contraceptive use, ANA negative lupus, etc.

Dr. Jack Cush reviews this past week's news and reports from RheumNow.com:

A subanalysis of the early rheumatoid arthritis (RA) "IMPROVED" study has shown that changes in RA-autoantibody levels are not associated with disease activity or or long-term drug response, but instead reflect intensity of immunosuppression.

Despite striking improvements in survival among patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) in recent decades -- from 1-year survival of less than 50% before the introduction of prednisone to 90% today in most specialized treatment centers -- many challenges remain in this perplexing, multis

Both Gout and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) comingle with a wide range of serious comorbidities. A matched retrospective cohort study from the UK Clinical Practice Research database shows those with OSA are at a higher risk of developing gout.

Hydroxychloroquine retinopathy prevention guidelines have revised from ideal body weight-based dosing to actual body weight-based dosing; the question remains whether these have been adopted in clinical practice.

A database of nearly 21,000 new HCQ users from a UK general population database studied HCQ dosing and use between 2007 and 2016. Specifically they examined whether users were subjected to excess HCQ dosing per ophthalmology guidelines (defined by exceeding 6.5 mg/kg of IBW and 5.0 mg/kg of ABW).

Several epidemiological studies have reported that a diagnosis of DM or PM may be associated with increased cancer risk. The association appears stronger for DM than PM.

The NEJM has reported the NIH's Undiagnosed Diseases Network (UDN) study results of genetically identifying new diseases from prospectively followed persons with undiagnosed disorders.

The UDN was formed in 2014 as a network of seven clinical sites, two sequencing cores, a coordinating center, central biorepository, a metabolomics core, and a model organisms screening center. It was established to apply a multidisciplinary model in the evaluation of the most challenging cases and to identify the biologic characteristics of newly discovered diseases.

Dr. Jack Cush updates the news and reports from the past week at RheumNow.com:

Dr Jack Cush reviews the News and Journal reports from the past week on RheumNow.com.  Be sure to check out our upcoming meeting in March 2019 - RheumNow Live.

Here are a few important advances in our understanding of interstitial lung disease (ILD) from the ACR 2018 meeting last week.

The Annals of Internal Medicine features a communique from the Karolinska Institutet in Sweden demonstrating that elevated levels of antiphospholipid antibodies may be found in patients with myocardial infarction without any autoimmune co-morbidity, published in Annals of Internal M