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FDA Arthritis Panel Split on the Efficacy and Safety of Baricitinib in RA
On Monday, April 23rd the FDA convened the Arthritis Advisory Committee (AAC) to evaluate Lilly’s resubmitted NDA for the approval of the JAK inhibitor baricitinib for use in rheumatoid arthritis (RA).
Read ArticleThe RheumNow Week in Review – Vitamin D Snark Report (4.20.18)
Dr. Jack Cush reviews the news and journal reports from the past week on RheumNow.com. A second life for Syk kinase, Vitamin D talk, VTE, regulatory hearings and the Lupus clinic edge.
Read ArticleIncreased Comorbidity Burden in Lupus African Americans
Researchers from Vanderbilt University Medical Center used electronic health records (EHR) to perform a phenome-wide study comparing African American (AA-SLE) and Caucasian (C-SLE) with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and found more comorbidities in AA-SLE, especially renal, cardiovascular, an
Read ArticleMedicare Drug Prices Jump Ten Times the Inflation Rate
CNN reports that a new congressional analysis of Medicare drug pricing shows the prices of the 20 most commonly prescribed brand-name drugs have risen nearly 10 times the annual rate of inflation in the past five years.
Read ArticleThe Consequences and Cure of Hepatitis C
I spent this past week seeing hepatitis C patients with our hepatologists, and being a rheumatologist, I was looking forward to seeing extra-hepatic manifestations of HCV that we read about in text-books - cryoglobulinemic vasculitis, sicca syndrome, porphyria cutanea tarda and many others. I suppose I should not be surprised that the week passed without seeing a single one of these.
Read ArticleUsing Synovial Tissue Biopsies to Develop Precision Medicine for Rheumatoid Arthritis
Researchers at Northwestern University have used ultrasound-guided tissue biopsy from the joints to analyze the genes of tissue macrophages with the hope that transcriptional profiling of synovial macrophages may be correlated with clinical parameters or drug responsiveness in rheumatoi
Read ArticleMMWR: Arthritis Prevalence Increases and Varies Widely
MMWR reports that In 2015, the number of adults with arthritis continued to increase; with marked geographic variability in arthritis estimates with gaps in arthritis management.
Read ArticleOpioid Overdoses Jump 30% in 2017
The CDC released new information yesterday showing that emergency department (ED) visits for opioid overdoses rose 30% in the US from July 2016 through September 2017; in addition, those with an overdose are more likely to a repeat overdose.
Read ArticleACR Responds to Association Health Plans Proposed Rule
In comments submitted today to the US Department of Labor in response to its Association Health Plans (AHP) proposed rule, the American College of Rheumatology urged Administration officials to protect essential health benefits and other consumer protections that make it possible for individuals
Read ArticleNHANES Survey Shows OA Rising and RA Declining
An analysis of 43,706 adults from the 1999-2014 National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys (NHANES) demonstrated temporal trends in the prevalence of arthritis, including a rise in osteoarthritis (OA) from 6.6% to 14.3%, while the prevalence of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) decreased from 5.9%
Read ArticleThe RWCS - RheumNow Week in Review - 9 February 2018
Dr. Jack Cush reviews highlights, news and recent research published this week on RheumNow.com. This week's report includes news and education from the RWCS meeting in Maui.
Read ArticleRWCS Meeting Begins Today
The 11th annual meeting of the Rheumatology Winter Clinical Symposium (RWCS) begins today (2/7) and runs through Saturday (2/10) and features a premiere faculty delivering state-of-the-art lectures.
Read ArticleBiosimilar Reports - February 2018
Biosimilars command a great deal of research, development and attention given the promise of significant cost savings and potentially wider use for those in need. The global biosimilar market is expected to reach $36 billion USD by 2022. Here is this month's roundup of clinical trials and journal articles, overviews/reviews, practice and physician attitudes, and regulatory and pharma news - all on the subject of biosimilars.
Read ArticleTop 10 MMWR CDC Reports from 2017
Here are the 10 most talked about MMWR Reports of 2017.
Read ArticleThe RheumNow Week in Review - 2 February 2018
Dr. Jack Cush reviews highlights, news and recent research published this week on RheumNow.com. This week's report includes rising epidemiologic numbers, vaccine updates for H.
Read ArticleRheumatology Physician Burnout and Depression
The 2018 Medscape Physician Burnout and Depression report shows that 42% of physician respondents report "burnout" and up to 15% experience some sort of depression. In a survey of 15,543 doctors from 29 specialties, they found highest burnout rates in critical care and neurologists (48%), family medicine (47%), ob/gyns and internists (46%). Lowest rates were seen in pathology and dermatology (32%), and plastic surgery (23%).
What did rheumatologists report?
Read ArticlePrevalence of Arthritis Grossly Underestimated
Researchers at the Boston University School of Medicine have published a new report showing that arthritis affected 91 million adults in the US in 2015 or 37% of the poplulation. Their prevalence estimate is 68% higher than previously reported arthritis national estimates.
Read ArticleGout Associated with Work Absenteeism
Annals of Rheumatic Disease reports that gout is associated with higher work absenteeism and thus, increased costs for society due to productivity loss.
Read ArticleHealth Economics of SLE
A number of presentations over the past few days have addressed the health economics of SLE.
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