Interferon Blocker Disappoints in SLE

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Yet another setback has occurred in the efforts to develop new medications for treating systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), as anifrolumab failed to meet the primary endpoint in a phase III trial, according to AstraZeneca and MedImmune. 

RheumNow Week in Review – Medical School Advice (9.7.18)

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Dr. Jack Cush reviews news and journal articles from the past week on RheumNow.com.

Osteoarthritis and the Risk of Mortality

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Osteoarthritis (OA) affects 27 million Americans but its affect on mortality is uncertain. A recent study shows that while self-reported OA does not increase mortality, radiographic OA of the knee (RKOA) is associated with higher mortality related to CVD, diabetes and renal disease.

ACR Releases State-by-State Rheumatic Disease Report Card

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The American College of Rheumatology (ACR) today released the Rheumatic Disease Report Card: Raising the Grade on Rheumatology Care in America, a first-of-its-kind report that evaluates just how difficult it can be to live well with a rheumatic disease in the United States.

Methotrexate's Low Efficacy in Cutaneous Psoriasis

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In a prospective, double-blind, randomized placebo-controlled study, Warren et al. studied the effect of an intensified methotrexate (MTX) in chronic plaque psoriasis and showed MTX to be effective and superior to placebo.

Usual Allopurinol Doses Insufficient in CKD Patients

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Uric acid (sUA) control may be a challenge in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD). A cohort study shows that conventional dosing recommendations for allopurinol are unlikely to reach target serum sUA goals.

CRA Recommendations for Lupus Assessment and Monitoring

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A Canadian Rheumatology Association SLE Working Group was established to develop recommendations for the assessment of people with systemic lupus erythematosus. A panel that included 23 adult rheumatologists, 4 pediatric rheumatologists, 1 immunologist, 4 general internal medicine and rheumatology trainees, and a patient representative, used GRADE methodology to assess the literature and develop guidelines.

Tocilizumab Equals other Biologics in Cardiovascular Risk

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An odd side effect of several new agents is the risk of hyperlipidemia. While this has been seen with tocilizumab (TCZ), there does not appear to be a resultant risk of cardiovascular (CV) events. A study of claims data compared CV risk in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients receiving TOC (an IL6 receptor antagonists) and other biologics and found no differences with regard to CV outcomes.

Sleep Apnea Raises Gout Risk

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Patients with obstructive sleep apnea were at increased risk for incident gout, particularly in the first years after the sleep apnea diagnosis, U.K. researchers reported.

New BSR Guidelines on Biologic Safe Use with Inflammatory Arthritis

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The British Society of Rheumatology has produced a set of NICE accredited guidelines for the use of biologic therapies in patients with inflammatory arthritis.

RheumNow Week in Review – Father Knows Best (Paternal Drugs OK) (8.31.18)

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Dr. Jack Cush reviews the news and journal articles from the past week on RheumNow.com. Cool info on paternal exposures to DMARDs/Biologics, Contraceptive let downs, good outcomes in PsA, depression-insomnia-pain triad in OA and how to store your biologic in a hurricane.

No Cancer Risk from Psoriatic Arthritis

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Inflammmation is a strong risk factor for malignancy. Yet there are mixed results on whether patients with psoriatic arthritis (PsAg) augments the incidence of cancer and all-cause and cause-mortality.

Treatment Preferences in Still’s Disease

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In July 2018, RheumNow launched a “Live Vote” survey of US and non-US rheumatologists that asked how they diagnose and treat systemic juvenile idiopathic arthritis (sJIA), also known as “Still’s disease”. It appears that many prefer to start therapy with an IL-1 inhibitor, after a course of steroids and MTX/DMARD. Yet, these findings suggest there are significant unmet needs in the diagnosis and management of sJIA patients.

2018 EULAR Recommendations for Hand Osteoarthritis Care

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The European League Against Rheumatism (EULAR) has previously put forth recommendations for management of hand osteoarthritis (OA) in 2007. But since then, advances and further evidence have emerged.

Adherence to Gout Therapies Painfully Low

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A retrospective study of the large UK Clinical Practice Research Datalink assessed patient compliance in gout and found that adherence to allopurinol is poor, especially among females and younger patients and those with fewer comorbidities.