ACR Applauds FTC Decision to Investigate PBM's

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The American College of Rheumatology applauds the Federal Trade Commission’s decision to investigate the business practices of pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs), which continue to increase PBM profit margins while placing the burden of skyrocketing drug costs on America’s most vulnerable patients,

What do our lupus patients think about treat-to-target?

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In SLE, two targets that are increasingly used are the DORIS 2021 Remission and the Lupus Low Disease Activity (LLDAS). T2T is more likely to be successful if the treating clinicians and the patients set the treatment goals together. What do our patients think about T2T and do they have any say/concern?

MMWR: Monkeypox Outbreak in Nine States

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CDC is tracking multiple reported U.S. monkeypox cases, and monitoring cases in persons in countries without endemic monkeypox and with no known travel links to an endemic area; current epidemiology suggests person-to-person community spread.

EULAR 2022 Top 10 Abstracts (6.10.2022)

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Dr. Jack Cush reviews the top abstracts from EULAR 2022  As chosen by me with the  aid of the RheumNow EULAR faculty.

CV risk factors not equal when considering magnitude of risk

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What can we learn from Oral Surveillance?

The Oral Surveillance trial has almost become a household word for rheumatologists.

Can we stop RA before it happens?

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Rheumatologists have long hoped and wondered whether the right type of early intervention could prevent rheumatoid arthritis occurring in at-risk individuals.

Gout Undertreatment Persists

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Despite updated gout management guidelines from European (EULAR) and British (BSR) societies, treatment of gout is suboptimal with regard to the use of urate-lowering therapy (ULT) and normalizing serum uric acid (< 6.0 mg/dl) levels.

The Safety of Rituximab and JAK Inhibitors with post-COVID Vaccination

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At the onset of the pandemic, data from the Global Rheumatology Alliance reported increased risk of poor severe COVID outcomes including deaths in patients who were treated with rituximab and baricitinib. With the vaccination program undertaken globally, has this risk been attenuated?

Is Pain Control by Cannabis an Option?

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An Annals of Internal Medicine review has shown that clinical trials and cohort studies of cannabinoids use for chronic pain may be associated with short-term improvements in chronic pain but come with an increased risk for dizziness and sedation.

Time to consider gender stratification in AxSpA diagnosis and management

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Differences across genders in many aspects related to rheumatic diseases diagnosis, phenotyping, trajectories definition and prediction of response to treatment have been overlooked.

BSR Guideline for Psoriatic Arthritis - 2022 Update

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The British Society of Rheumatology has published their updated 2022 recommendations for the use of biologics and targeted synthetic treatments in patients with psoriatic arthritis. These guidelines follow initial treatment with a single conventional systemic disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drug, typically methotrexate typically. They noted that up to 50% of people with PsA require biologic or targeted synthetic (b/ts)DMARD therapy. 

Emerging Therapeutics for Lupus

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Impressive data on novel treatment for SLE were presented at the EULAR22 Congress. A disease that is difficult to study due to its pleomorphic presentation, unpredictable disease course, and high mortality rates, SLE is considered the dragon of all autoimmune diseases. Here are highlights of four exciting abstracts presented at the meeting with emerging therapeutics designed to slay the beast.