General Rheumatology

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EBR Journal Club: Brepocitinib in Dermatomyositis (VALOR) The EBR Journal Club Companion applies my adapted version of the JAMA approach to critical appraisal. Each review covers four domains: Does this apply to my patients? What is the risk of bias? How great are the benefits https://t.co/UoCQM4GtwL
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Italian retrospective study of 36 difficult #GCA pts (89% relapsed; 72% prev TCZ) showed Clinical remission 85%, 81%, & 83% at 3, 6, & 12 mos. GC-free remission increased to 15%, 28%, & 40% at 3, 6, & 12 mos. GCs d/c in 43%. Results at odds w/ ph III GCAptAIN RCT where SEC https://t.co/VnMSCPwMrn
Article

Don’t Hold the JAK (10.9.2026)

Jack Cush, MD

On this week's podcast, Dr. Jack Cush reviews the news: Steroids are easy to start and hard to stop; hold the MTX but not the biologic or JAK, weighing in on avacopan, and age-old messages for old-age patients. 

Article

Can DMARD Doses Be Safely Reduced for RA Patients?

MedPage Today

Close to 90% of patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) well controlled on targeted therapies were able to take 50% dosage reductions without experiencing worsened disease activity in a randomized trial, South Korean researchers said.

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Exercise Can Improve Pain A pooled meta-analyses (n=197,392) shows that exercise reduced pain versus control immediately after the intervention (SMD −0.59; 95% CI −0.65 to −0.53; P<0.001). The benefit held across musculoskeletal, inflammatory, neurologic and cancer pain, and https://t.co/rbZlyfrCOW
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Triple Hormone Receptor Agonist for Treatment of Obesity and Knee Osteoarthritis The NEJM reports that retatrutide, an investigational incretin agent, was shown to yield up to 25% weight reduction, with subanalyses also showing reduced pain with knee osteoarthritis, and less https://t.co/18DM2UL6vB
Article

Exercise Can Improve Pain

Jack Cush, MD

This pooled meta-analyses (n=197,392) shows that exercise reduced pain versus control immediately after the intervention (SMD −0.59; 95% CI −0.65 to −0.53; P0.001). The benefit held across musculoskeletal, inflammatory, neurologic and cancer pain, and for every modality tested.

Dr. John Cush Tweet
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Danish national study (2003-2024) of 51,401 #PMR pts (24K PCPs, 27K secondary MDs): PMR incidence = 112/100K. PMR decr 53% in primary care & incr 30% in secondary care (overall 12% decline). Among PMR, GCA rate was 5.4/1,000 PYs, w/ median 68 days from PMR Dx. 28% & 22% were https://t.co/1VlI5r1r0L
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"No person has the right to rain on your dreams." - Martin Luther King, Jr.
Dr. John Cush Tweet
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Mediterranean Diet Lowers Incident Rheumatoid Arthritis Risk The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition has published the results of the SUN Project study, showing that long-term adherence to a Mediterranean diet (MedDiet) was associated with a substantially lower risk of https://t.co/9GhEwXuCEI
Article

Petri SLE Pearls: An Update

Kathryn H. Dao, M.D.

At the CCR West 2026 conference in Huntington Beach, California, Dr. Michelle Petri updated her Petri Pearls. Some are derived from new data, while others are from her extensive experience caring for patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). As always, her observations and wisdom have

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VA/DoD 2025 Obesity Guidelines Annals of Internal Medicine has published the updated 2025 U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and U.S. Department of Defense Clinical Practice Guidelines on adult Overweight and Obesity management. This effort involved a multidisciplinary panel https://t.co/ukuKGCHhOf

Therapeutic Updates

5-Year Results of an IL-23 Inhibitor in Patients With PsA

AbbVie March 2026
Dr. Alvin Wells and Dr. Shikha Singla share their clinical perspectives on using an IL–23 inhibitor to manage patients with PsA throughout their treatment journey in the context of 5-year data from the KEEPsAKE trial program.
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Sjögren’s Disease – What Are You Missing?

Novartis November RX Update
What could you be missing in Sjögren's disease? Explore hypothetical patient cases with atypical presentations, systemic manifestations, and overlooked symptoms. Gain expert insights and practical tips for clinical assessment from Dr Shereen Mahmood and learn how the ESSDAI can help you measure disease activity.
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A JAKi in GCA: Phase 3 Results Through 2 Years

AbbVie November RX Update
Listen as rheumatologists Dr. Anisha Dua and Dr. Ben Boone discuss the latest efficacy and safety results over 2 years from a Phase 3 trial in GCA, including remission, flares, and glucocorticoid use in patients continuing vs withdrawing a JAKi"
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Recent Blogs

rheumthought

Treatment for Obesity and Inflammation, but at what Cost?

Jonathan Kay, MD
Kay RT cover still

The costs of GLP-1 agonists must come down in order to make these treatments available to the people who need them - including many people with rheumatologic diseases. 

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Good Grief

Jack Cush, MD
Dick, Jack

When it rains it pours, but when it comes to grief, it’s like the rains that just won't let up.

Just too many deaths this past month. All devastating, all my immediate sphere. All hard to fathom. How can something so inevitable be a recurring, unwelcome, unsolvable bad dream?

I lost my father when I was 15, my sister was 20 and my mother when I was in medical school. And I've done this many, many times since.

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rheumthought

Obesity in Rheumatic Diseases: More than just a Comorbidity

Marina Magrey, MD
Magrey RT cover image
A few years ago, when I would see a patient with rheumatic disease and increased BMI, I would often document it as obesity as a comorbidity, recommend weight loss and exercise, and then move on. My approach has changed.
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Podcasts

  • Obesity & Inflammation: Understanding the Impact on Rheumatic Disease
  • Systemic Burden of Gout Part 1
  • Gout Lessons from the Clinic Part 2

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