Simon Says “Don’t Do This” (1.27.2022)
Dr. Jack Cush reviews this week’s journal articles, focuses on studies that should not have been done and responds to viewer questions in Ask Cush Anything.
News
Rheumatic Disease - IBD Overlap
MedPage Today
Nearly one in 10 patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) also have rheumatologic disorders, meaning that specialists have to talk to each other to develop a treatment plan that works for both conditions, a researcher suggested.
AI Passes U.S. Medical Licensing Exam
MedPage Today
Two artificial intelligence (AI) programs -- including ChatGPT -- have passed the U.S. Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE), according to two recent papers.
VEXAS may be more common than expected
A great study of a recently described rheumatologic/hematologic disorder VEXAS (vacuoles, E1-ubiquitin-activating enzyme, X-linked, autoinflammatory, somatic) syndrome recently appeared in JAMA, describing the frequency and presentations of UBA1 variant.
Blood Test Identifies Osteoarthritis Progression
EurekAlert!
A new blood test that can identify progression of osteoarthritis in the knee is more accurate than current methods, providing an important tool to advance research and speed discovery of new therapies.
Variable Pregnancy Outcomes with Belimumab in SLE
An analysis of the belimumab clinical trials, the Belimumab Pregnancy Registry (BPR), and postmarketing/spontaneous reports looked at outcomes in pregnant systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) exposed to belimumab reported there are few pregnancies and confounding disease and comorbidity factors to
Periprosthetic Joint Infections
Recent NEJM has reviewed arthroplasty-associated infection and periprosthetic joint infections (PJI), noting this is a rare event; notably these infections are caused by skin microorganisms introduced during arthroplasty surgery or may be seeded post-surgically, via hematogenously spread or compromised local tissues (skin or bone).
JAK-pot Study: To Cycle or Switch after JAK inhibitor Failure?
Data from 17 international registries (JAK-pot collaboration) suggest that for Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients failing their first janus kinase inhibitor (JAKi), it did not matter if they were cycled to another JAKi or switched to a biologic disease-modifying antirheumatic drug (bDMARD).
Burden of BMI on Costs of Musculoskeletal Diseases
A cross-sectional global study shows a substantial impact of obesity and BMI on the health and economic impact of patients with musculoskeletal (MSK) disorders.
PsA Til Death Do Us Part (1.20.2023)
Dr. Jack Cush reviews the highlights from the past week on RheumNow.com.
AS, but not PsA, has Increased Mortality Risk
Inflammatory disorders are often accompanied by an increased mortality risk, either from secondary malignancy, infection or cardiovascular disease.
Phase III Trials Back Bimekizumab for Spondyloarthritis
Medpage Today
Bimekizumab, an investigational biologic drug targeting interleukin (IL)-17A/F, appeared highly effective in patients with axial spondyloarthritis (axSpA), researchers said.
