RheumNow Podcast – ACR 20 is Coming to Town (10.30.20)
Dr Jack Cush overviews the RheumNow commitment, upcoming bonus coverage of ACR20 and the good news and journal reports from the past week on RheumNow.com
News
Abatacept in Early Systemic Sclerosis (ASSET study)
An open-label extension of the ASSET trial (abatacept in diffuse cutaneous systemic sclerosis) showed continued safety with significant improvements in the modified Rodnan Skin Score (mRSS) at 12 months, suggesting abatacept (ABA) may benefit early systemic sclerosis (SSc).
FDA Invites Patient Input on Systemic Sclerosis Drug Development
While there have been several promising new agents for systemic sclerosis, many have failed - with all noting the difficulties in appropriate outcomes and endpoints for clinical trials. With this in mind, the FDA was interested in hearing patients’ perspectives on systemic sclerosis and new drug development, and held a virtual meeting on 10/13/20.
Guselkumab, an IL-23 Inhibitor, Effective in Psoriatic Arthritis
The DISCOVER‐2 trial has shown that guselkumab, an interleukin‐23p19 was shown to be safe and effective in biologic‐naïve psoriatic arthritis (PsA) patients in a one year study.
Fibromyalgia Therapies Show Limited Evidence of Pain and QOL Reduction
JAMA Internal Medicine has published a review showing that most currently approved therapies for fibromyalgia (FM) do not have high-quality evidence to support their use; with some reducing pain or improving quality of life (QOL) in the short term, but overall effect size is not impressive.
Vedolizumab Promising in Immune-Related GI Events
Vedolizumab (Entyvio) was superior to infliximab (Remicade) for treating immune-mediated diarrhea and colitis (IMDC), a researcher reported.
Immune Necrotizing Myopathy
A full read review of immune-mediated necrotizing myopathy is portrayed as a distinct subtype of inflammatory myopathies first described in 2004.
Telemedicine Outcomes in RA Care
A new short‐term follow‐up study has shown no significant difference in outcomes and quality measures in patients with RA who were managed by telemedicine (compared to usual in-person care).
FDA Hearing on COVID-19 Vaccines
Yesterday the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) "Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee" conve
RheumNow Podcast – Back Talk: Questions from Listeners (10.23.20)
Dr. Jack Cush reviews the news, journal reports, survey results and "Back Talk" questions from Rheums.
High Burnout Rates Among Rheumatologists
Bergman and colleagues have studied a large cohort of US rheumatologists and found that nearly half meet at least one criterion defining "burnout" among physicians.
Remdesivir FDA Approved for Hospitalized COVID-19
The FDA has approved Gilead Sciences Inc’s antiviral drug remdesivir for treating patients hospitalized with COVID-19, making it the first and only drug approved for the disease in the United States.
Clinical Trial Boom or Bust in Severe COVID-19
A number of recently published clinical trials are further defining the efficacy and outcomes of tocilizumab or remdesivir in treating SARs-CoV-2 infection.
Remdesivir
Biologic Use for Arthritis Linked With Depression and Anxiety
In a recent study of patients with inflammatory rheumatic diseases, the initiation of a biologic treatment or switching to another biologic was associated with an increased likelihood of the use of antidepressants and anxiolytics, reported Petros P. Sfikakis, MD, of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, and colleagues in RMD Open: Rheumatic & Musculoskeletal Diseases.
Outpatient Visits Return to Pre-COVID Rates
The COVID-19 pandemic dramatically impacted outpatient care - numbers, scope, quality, etc, but a recent study suggests that while COVID has changed the scope of care, the numbers of outpatient visits have risen to near pre-pandemic numbers.