Antidrug Antibodies Impair Response to Biologic Drugs

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Monitoring for antidrug antibodies with biologic has not been routine in rheumatology but a new study suggests that antidrug antibodies correlate with nonresponse to bDMARDs in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients.

Pegloticase Plus Methotrexate in Refractory Gout - MIRROR Study 12 mos. Results

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The 12-month safety and efficacy of pegloticase + methotrexate (MTX) in the MIRROR trial shows continued efficacy and tophi resolution after 12 months of therapy.

Biologics Keep Early RA in Check for at Least One Year

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Treatment with at least some biologic drugs significantly reduced 1-year progression of early rheumatoid arthritis (RA) relative to classical small-molecule agents, researchers reported.

RA Biologics Lower COVID-19 Deaths, but Not Recovery Time

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Do abatacept, cenicriviroc, or infliximab improve time to recovery for patients hospitalized with COVID-19 pneumonia compared with standard care?

Baricitinib Effective in JIA Subsets

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A phase 3 trial assessed a selective Janus kinase 1/2-inhibitor, baricitinib, in patients with juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA), demonstrating it's efficacy and safety compared to placebo.

GCA and the Risk of Cerebrovascular Ischemic Events

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Cerebrovascular ischemic events (CIE) can be one of the most severe complications of giant cell arteritis (GCA), but is seen in 4-5% of GCA patients according to a recent French University Hospital. 

Upadacitinib Outcomes in High Risk RA Patients

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A safety analysis of six phase III SELECT trials showed that higher-risk rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients had an increased risk of MACE, malignancy (excluding NMSC) and venous thromboembolic events (VTE) regardless of being treated with either upadacitinib (UPA) or adalimumab (ADA).

ICYMI: ChatGPT - A Boon or Threat to Scientific Publication?

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ChatGPT is a new, artificial intelligence chatbot that has dramatically changed the digital worlds of education, research, graphic design, statistics and more. While this AI driven platform has the untold potential in generating written content, there is considerable concern in assuring that human-generated content of research, education and publishing has veracity.

ICYMI: LAVLI - A New Autoinflammatory Disorder

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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.

ICYMI: Drug Safety Differences with New Novel Therapies in RA

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Safety outcomes for targeted synthetic or biological disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (b/ts DMARDs) used to treat RA were studied using data from the Anti-Rheumatic Therapies in Sweden (ARTIS) registry, showing that these newer agents are largely similar, but still have particular differences for specific infection or other adverse event risks.

ICYMI: GRAPPA Recommendations for Treating Enthesitis in Psoriatic Arthritis

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GRAPPA has provided new, evidence based updates to the management of enthesitis in patients with psoriatic arthritis (PsA), affecting at least 30% of PsA patients and is associated with more severe disease, x-ray damage, and poorer outcomes. 

ICYMI: Hydroxychloroquine Dose and Risk for Incident Retinopathy

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A cohort study in Annals of Internal Medicine shows that higher hydroxychloroquine doses was associated with progressively greater risk for incident retinopathy. The study aimed to assess the long-term risk for incident hydroxychloroquine retinopathy and examine the degree to which average hydroxychloroquine dose within the first 5 years of treatment predicts this risk.