All News
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.
Read ArticleCD19 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.
Read ArticleCurbside Consults (2.16.2024)
Dr. Jack Cush answers audience clinical case questions sent by email or "ask Cush anything". Cases and questions from:
Read ArticleVITAL 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)".
Read ArticleInflammatory Arthritis in Systemic Sclerosis is Problematic
Inflammatory arthritis (IA) is a common manifestation in systemic sclerosis (SSc), affecting nearly one-third of patients.
Read ArticleAutoimmune 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.
Read ArticleSeXXist 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.
Read ArticleSevere 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.
Read ArticleTic-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.
Read Article2023 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.
Read ArticleDrug-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.
Read Article2023 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.
Read ArticleBest 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.
Read ArticleStillsNow 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.
Read ArticleBest of 2023: EULAR/ACR Guidance on Haemophagocytic Lymphohistiocytosis/Macrophage Activation Syndrome
A EULAR/American College of Rheumatology task force has established evidence based, up-to-date guidance and expert opinion on the evaluation, management and monitoring of patients with Haemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (HLH) and macrophage activation syndrome (MAS), with the primary intent to halt disease progression and prevent life-threatening complications from HLH/MAS.
Read ArticleBest of 2023: LAVLI - A New Autoinflammatory Disorder
NIH researchers have have described a novel autoinflammatory disorder called "Lyn kinase-associated vasculopathy and liver fibrosis" (LAVLI), based on a mutation in the LYN gene (that encodes the Lyn kinase protein). They discovered that increased Lyn kinase activity promotes systemic inflammation, by altering microvascular permeability and neutrophil recruitment, while at the same time promoting hepatic fibrosis.
Read ArticleBest of 2023: 2022 EULAR Recommendations for ANCA-associated Vasculitis
EULAR has published the 2022 update on recommendations for the management of antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibody (ANCA)-associated vasculitis (AAV). AAV recommendations were last published in 2016, and since, research and clinical trials have advanced our understanding of AAV. A EULAR task force of 20 experts from 16 countries, reviewed the literature and developed four overarching principles and 17 recommendations.
Read ArticleCBT or Naltrexone in Fibromyalgia (12.8.2023)
Dr. Jack Cush reviews the news and journal articles from the past week on RheumNow.com. Be sure to catch the early registration break for 2024 RheumNow Live.
Read ArticleICYMI: New Biomarkers and Therapeutics Show Potential in Still's Disease
Adult-onset Still’s disease is a rare complex, sporadic, systemic autoinflammatory disease similar to systemic juvenile idiopathic arthritis characterized by sustained fever, salmon-colored rash, and arthritis. The 2023 ACR convergence featured several abstracts spotlighting developments in understanding and managing this complex disease spectrum.
Read Article