Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore has been named the top hospital for rheumatology by U.S. News & World Report. This is the 6th year in a row they have held this spot. The top 5 remain the same as last year with the only difference being the # 2 slot going to the Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS) in New York City. The other top centers include the Cleveland Clinic, Mayo Clinic and Brigham Hospital.

A novel B-cell depletion trial, using obexelimab (a bifunctional, monoclonal antibody that binds CD19 and Fc gamma receptor IIb), has shown efficacy and safety in patients with active IgG4-related disease.

An open-label, uncontrolled pilot trial has shown that JAK signaling is involved in the pathogenesis of PMR and that tofacitinib is as effective as glucocorticoids (GC) in patients with polymyalgia rheumatica (PMR).

Another study has confirmed that the intestinal microbiome's composition in people with inflammatory arthritis differs from that in other people, and in potentially unhealthy ways -- but whether the microbiome alterations actually cause arthritis is less clear.  In fact, the investigators believe it's probably the other way around.

The Annals of Internal Medicine has published a predictive score to distinguish low-risk from high-risk inflammatory arthritis (IA) and who may benefit from risk stratification and preventive measures.