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The Diverse Fate of Seronegative Rheumatoid Arthritis
A Finnish Rheumatology Center followed 435 early, seronegative rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients for 10-years and found that only 3% became erosive or seropositive RA.
Read ArticleObesity, Hypertension and Diuretics Drive Gout Risk
A recent metanalysis suggests that obesity, hypertension and diuretic use are associated with a two-fold increased risk of incident gout.
From a potential of 9923 articles, researchers analyzed 11 studies with data suitable for the meta-analysis.
Read ArticleHydroxychloroquine Being Over-Dosed with New Guidelines?
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).
Best of 2017: Are ANA Tests Unreliable?
Pisetsky and colleagues have reported in the Annals of Rheumatic Disease that ANA tests done on established SLE patients may yield surprisingly disparate results.
While ANA negative lupus was a problem of old assays and the loss of ANA positivity may be seen with chronicity or age, most rheumatologists believe that ANA positivity is an absolute requirement for the diagnosis of systemic lupus erythematosus.
Read ArticleThe RheumNow Week in Review – Life Savers for Rheumatologists (6.29.18)
Dr. Jack Cush reviews selected news and journal reports from the past week on RheumNow.com.
Read ArticleThe RheumNow Week in Review – EULAR18 Epilogue (6.22.18)
Dr. Jack Cush reviews EULAR 2018 and the past week's news and reports from RheumNow.com, including DMARDs in OA, the price of Penicillamine, Infections when ANCA+, CV outcomes in gout, NSAIDs in Pregnancy and Seropostive vs. Seronegative Outcomes.
Read ArticleSeronegative and Seropositive Rheumatoids Respond Equally Well
A cohort study of 241 DMARD-naive rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients, meeting either 1987 ACR or the 2010 ACR/EULAR classification criteria for RA, compared the baseline status and long term outcomes of seronegative (SNRA) and seropositive (SPRA).
Read ArticleEULAR 2018 - Day 2 Report
Highlights from Day 2 of the EULAR meeting in Amsterdam include high MBDA scores in ACPA negative RA predicts remission; characterization of difficult RA; and gender differences in psoriatic responses to TNF inhibitors.
Read ArticleThe RheumNow Week in Review – Baricitinib Splash (6.7.18)
Dr. Jack Cush discusses the past week's news and journal articles featured on RheumNow.com - including reports on advance practice clinicians, baricitinib, gout, disease activity, hypomagnesemia and upadacitinib.
Read ArticleSPAR Predicts ILD Progression in Systemic Sclerosis
The development and progression of interstitial lung disease in systemic sclerosis can be an ominous finding.
Read ArticleLow Disease Activity in Lupus Limits Damage
Patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) who were assessed as being in a low disease activity state during more than half of clinical visits had a decrease in organ damage events of approximately 50%, a retrospective study found.
Read ArticleSons of Gout Study
The genetics and heritability of gout has suggested a higher risk in certain families. A UK cohort study examined the prevalence of gout and monosodium urate (MSU) crystal deposition among those at risk (sons of gout patients) for gout and found a high incidence of hyperuricemia and MSU crystal deposition.
Read ArticleLong Term Remission in SLE is Possible?
Researchers from the Toronto Lupus Clinic have described an atypical “monophasic” course in a small number (7.5%) of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) patients who achieved and sustained clinical remission, with most off of all medications for an average of 18 years.
Read ArticleMPO Antibodies Predict Relapses in MPO-ANCA-Associated Vasculitis
A study of MPO-ANCA positive patients followed serially over 2 years shows that reappearance of MPO‐ANCA may predict relapse in patients with MPO‐ANCA positive AAV and that routine MPO‐ANCA monitoring is warranted.
Read ArticleThe Hazardous Highs and Lows of Uric Acid
Both high and low levels of uric acid were linked with increased risks of death, showing a U-shaped association between serum uric acid levels and all-cause, cardiovascular, and cancer mortality, Korean researchers reported.
Read ArticleThe RheumNow Week in Review - Nonadherence and Astronomic Costs (5.11.18)
Dr. Jack Cush reviews highlights, news and journal articles from the past week on RheumNow.com.
Read ArticleThe RheumNow Week in Review – FDA Showdown for Baricitinib (4.27.18)
Dr. Jack Cush reviews the news and FDA proceedings from the past week on RheumNow.com.
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 ArticleRheumNow Week in Review - Do you Dig Shingrix? (4.6.2018)
Dr. Jack Cush reviews the news and journal reports from the past week on RheumNow.com. Highlights includes manpower shortfalls, comorbidities in AA Lupus, certolizumab pregnancy safety, which Shingles vaccine is best and the power of combination biologics in severe refractory SLE.
Read ArticleSynBioSe: Combo Rituximab and Belimumab Succeeds in Severe Refractory Lupus
One of the driving pathogenic mechanisms in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is the generation of immune complexes capable of inducing netosis (NET formation) and NET-derived DNA that may be an amplifying autoantigen and give rise to anti-nuclear autoantibodies (ANAs).
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