A large cohort study of expectant fathers treated for immune-mediated inflammatory diseases (IMIDs) failed to show any detrimental effect from paternal exposure to immunosuppressive or biologic agents on offspring outcomes.

In case you missed it, RheumNow Live 2021 delivers what it promises: a good consistent program pack with high energy interactive learning. In the Day 1 learning pods, the audience was given a tour of the new drugs in development for RA. Several noteworthy ones were highlighted by Dr. Roy Fleischmann as listed below:  

A two day FDA review by the Drug Safety and Risk Management and Arthritis Advisory Committees has yielded a 19-1 vote against the approval of tanezumab, a nerve growth factor inhibitor, for use in osteoarthritis (OA).

Tanezumab (TAN) has been developed by Pfizer and Eli Lilly over the last 15 years, with over 40 clinical trials that largely show TAN is superior to placebo but equivalent to NSAIDs in osteoarthritis outcomes. 

Treat-to-target strategy is widely advocated as an important means of optimizing treatment responses in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Even though T2T is encouraged by most guidelines, a current report shows that US Rheumatologists fail to implement T2T in their daily practice.

Travel can be challenging for arthritis patients. Here are some useful tips to travel smoothly and pain free.

Travel can be challenging for arthritis patients. Here are some useful tips to travel smoothly and pain free.

Travel can be challenging for arthritis patients. Here are some useful tips to travel smoothly and pain free.

Travel can be challenging for arthritis patients. Here are some useful tips to travel smoothly and pain free.

The CDC has addressed the effects and the issues of domestic and international travel on its website.  Below is a sampling of key advice.

Several new interleukin-6 inhibitors made headlines this week. While none of the new IL-6 inhibitors are soon to be approved and available, these studies may redefine the role of other non-TNF biologics in the future.

Women with the autoimmune inflammatory myopathies dermatomyositis (DM) and polymyositis (PM) are at increased risk for hypertensive disorders in pregnancy, a nationwide retrospective study found.

In a multivariate analysis that adjusted for factors such as maternal age, race/ethnicity, and diabetes mellitus, a diagnosis of DM/PM was significantly associated with hypertensive disorders such as preeclampsia and eclampsia (OR 2.90, 95% CI 2.0-4.22, P<0.001), according to Lorinda Chung, MD, of Stanford University, and colleagues.

Sjogren's syndrome is a highly prevalent disorder, affecting women ten times more frequently than men.  Although the typical onset follows menopause, a minority of women may develop primary Sjogren’s syndrome (pSS) during child-bearing years.

The following is a compilation of several frequently asked questions regarding tuberculosis (TB) testing or treatment in patients on a TNF inhibitor (TNFi) or other biologic agents.

The annual ACR/ARHP meeting, which begins today, Sunday November 5th, is for many the premier meeting in rheumatology. The good news is that RheumNow and its expanded faculty will cover the meeting today and each day until Thursday. I haven’t missed an ACR meeting since 1984. In this span of 30 years I have acquired insights on how to navigate such a big meeting. When I say big, I mean over 15,000 attendees from over 100 countries swarming throughout a convention center that has the elements of the Texas state fair, Costco gone wild and a sold-out Margaritaville concert. Here's my ACR Playbook.

A study from the British Society for Rheumatology Biologics Register (BSRBR-RA) demonstrates that polypharmacy is a predictor of lower treatment responses and more serious adverse events (SAEs) in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients.

A review of this 22,005 RA patients enrolled in a prospective observational cohort study assessed the influence of polypharmacy on the odds of a EULAR 'good response' and the risk of SAE after 12 months of biologic therapy.

Lee and colleagues from Brigham and Women's Hospital have analyzed the last decade of disease‐modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs) use in patients with psoriatic arthritis (PsA) and found nearly 40% were treated with a bDMARD, along with a decreasing trend in complete DMARD discontinuations.

Data claims were derived from a large US commercial health plan, and identified PsA patients initiating DMARD therapy and changes in the DMARD regimen over the next 12‐month period.

Pain management in the U.S. is at a vexing crossroad. The news tells us that narcotics are increasingly being restricted for their dangerous side effects and inappropriate use. Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are often avoided for their gastrointestinal, renal and cardiovascular effects, and acetaminophen is touted to either be ineffective or more hepatotoxic than appreciated by most. 

Analysis of the FDA Adverse Event Reporting System data examined the association between statins' musculoskeletal adverse events (MAEs).

Review of the data shows that atorvastatin and rosuvastatin (with strong low‐density lipoprotein cholesterol‐lowering effects) had a higher risk and a faster onset of MAEs when compared with simvastatin.

They could not detect whether concomitant drugs shifted the onset timing of MAEs. 

These data may impact which statin is used in select patients. 

The 2010 NHANES study suggests that the overall prevalence of osteoporosis (OP) in the USA is ~10% or 10.2 million older adults (> 50 yrs) had osteoporosis.  This combined with the ~44% prevalence of low bone mass (43.4 million) highlights the public health problem of OP and osteopenia in the USA.

An analysis by the NIH-NIAMS shows that $990 million dollars was spent on anti-osteoporosis drugs in 2013. 

Researchers in Zurich studed 102 systemic sclerosis with serial PFTs and high-resolution computed tomography of the chest (HRCT). They found significant interstitial lung disease (ILD) by HRCT in 63 percent. But, only 26 percent had a forced vital capacity (FVC) <80 percent, and 53 percent had a reduction in one or more PFTs.

Among patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) who had interstitial lung disease (ILD), the pattern of ILD did influence mortality, but other pulmonary factors also contributed, a meta-analysis suggested.

In 10 studies that compared the usual interstitial pneumonia (UIP) pattern of ILD with other patterns, an increased mortality risk was seen in the UIP group (RR 1.66, 95% CI 1.07-2.76) but heterogeneity was high (I2 =76%, P<0.00001), according to Namrata Singh, MD, of the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics in Iowa City, and colleagues.

The U.S. Supreme Court has declined to hear a case over whether companies that make biosimilar drugs must wait six months after federal approval before they bring them to the market.

Specifically, the declined the petition by Apotex (against Amgen) arguing that Apotex should not have to wait 6 months after its biosimilar of the Amgen product is FDA approved. Current law requires the biosimilar manufacturer to give 180 days notice to brand-name manufacturer (Amgen) about its marketing plans.