Dr. Jack Cush reviews why we all love our rheumatology fellows and our best advice for them stemming from these articles.

An analysis of the tofacitinib (Xeljanz) drug development program in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), psoriatic arthritis (PsA) and ulcerative colitis suggests a low level risk for venous (VTE) and arterial thromboembolism (ATE).  

The Annals of Internal Medicine reports that biannual rituximab infusions over 18 months was effective at maintaining remission in patients with antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibody–associated vasculitis (AAV).

A case-controlled study shows that methotrexate (MTX) use in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is not associated with interstitial lung disease (ILD) according to a report in the European Respiratory Journal. Researchers examined the associatioin by comparing 410 RA patients with chronic fibrotic ILD (RA-ILD) and 673 patients with RA without ILD.

The interleukin (IL)-1β inhibitor canakinumab (Ilaris) showed promise for preventing the need for hip or knee replacement among patients with osteoarthritis in an exploratory analysis of data from a randomized clinical trial, investigators reported. Among patients enrolled in CANTOS, the pooled incidence rate for total hip replacement/total knee replacement was 0.31 events per 100 person-years for those receiving the monoclonal antibody every 3

In this lockdown, virtual medicine, post-COVID world, wouldn't it be ideal to have an reliable digital readout on patient activity as a measure of health? A multicenter study from the University of Nebraska Medical Center and the University of Alabama at Birminghams have completed a novel trial showing that the use of wearable activity trackers in gout patients was both feasible and effective in assessing gout activity and flares. 

Ridker and colleagues have shown that statins (3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl coenzyme-A (HMG Co-A) reductase inhibitors) are effective at treating hyperlipidaemia and lowering C-reactive protein levels; Aranaow and colleagues have shown that lovastatin, when given to rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients with elevated CRP levels failed to significantly lower disease activity.