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Economics

Opioids Down, Gabapentins Up

The number of U.S. patients prescribed long-term opioid therapy declined from 2015 to 2023, but co-prescribing of opioids with gabapentinoids increased, prescription data showed.

In 2023, 4.2 million people had an active long-term opioid therapy episode, defined as a period of opioid

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Korean study 50600 adult RA pts (Dx 2010-2020) shows Sustained high-income was assoc w/ reduced mortality, esp in younger pts (adj HR 0.50 <65 years vs 0.74 ≥65 years). Amplifed by Rural residence https://t.co/DUZoNsPSHj https://t.co/PV3Umlrgvv
Dr. John Cush @RheumNow( View Tweet )

Updated CRA/SPARCC Recommendations for Axial Spondyloarthritis

In 2024, the Canadian Rheumatology Association (CMA) and the Spondyloarthritis Research Consortium of Canada (SPARCC) published a comprehensive set of 56 treatment recommendations for the management of axial spondyloarthritis. This first update is focused on the reassessment of IL-17i

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Large pharmaceutical companies reduced their workforces by more than 22,000 employees in 2025. Among 17 largest companies , only five logged a head count increase in 2025 https://t.co/VdtlUaF4Q3 https://t.co/2xsCs9O1Tw
Dr. John Cush @RheumNow( View Tweet )

Ixekizumab With Tirzepatide Efficacy in Obese Psoriatic Arthritis

The TOGETHER-PsA trial has demonstrated the efficacy and safety of ixekizumab (IXE) administered with tirzepatide (TZP) in adult active psoriatic arthritis (PsA) patients who were overweight or obese.

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TENS Efficacy in Fibromyalgia

A randomized clinical trial of transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) in fibromyalgia showed meaningful improvement in pain for 6 months when combined with physical therapy (PT). 

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Economic analysis of ESR & CRP testing (are they same or different?). Compared to doing either ESR OR CRP, they found the ESR + CRP testing was cost-effective strategy, reducing misdiagnoses, followup costs and overall healthcare costs. https://t.co/UU15bxuPKP https://t.co/7aWwBM8CdY
Dr. John Cush @RheumNow( View Tweet )

Moral Distress (3.27.2026)

Dr. Jack Cush reviews the journal reports and news from RheumNow.com.  This week we discuss moral distress, FM in PsA, Lyme Vax is back & hidden but tangible benefits of the MDHAQ.

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NEJM: Polymyalgia Rheumatica

Drs. Dejaco and Matteson have published and update and review of polymyalgia rheumatica (PMR) in the NEJM. They lay out the initial approach to diagnosis, initial steroid dosing, management over time and when to use steroid sparing therapy.

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Incident RA is assoc w/ considerable work loss. 3850 RA pts compared to 4422 same-sex siblings (2006-2020). Work loss began 13 mos before RA Dx & peaked the year after, less in last 10 yrs. Work loss highly skewed; small proportion contributed the most work loss days. https://t.co/splolrEDpe
Dr. John Cush @RheumNow( View Tweet )

Spotty Medicare Coverage for Newer Rheumatoid Arthritis Meds

MedPage Today

Medicare coverage of targeted disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs) for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) -- both under Medicare Advantage and in separate Part D plans -- is likely to leave many patients wanting, researchers found.

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Economic analysis of ESR & CRP testing (are they same or different?). Compared to doing either ESR OR CRP, they found the ESR + CRP testing was cost-effective strategy, reducing misdiagnoses, followup costs and overall healthcare costs. https://t.co/UU15bxuPKP https://t.co/7zNkUOcQpU
Dr. John Cush @RheumNow( View Tweet )

Who Treats Spondyloarthritis Better?

MedPage Today

European nations may be winning at optimizing care for people with axial spondyloarthritis (axSpA), international survey data indicate. In data collected from physicians and patients in the U.S. and five European countries, American patients reported a greater symptom burden on average after

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EULAR 2025 Update for Behçet’s syndrome

EULAR has updated its recommendations for the management of Behçet’s syndrome, the last being published in 2018. The current update carries no recommendations from the previous version: seven recommendations have content modifications, four have minor wording amends, and one is entirely new

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2025 Update: EULAR Recommendations on Rheumatoid Arthritis Management

The European Alliance of Associations for Rheumatology (EULAR) has updated their rheumatoid arthritis (RA) management recommendations, notably with fewer recommendations (total of 9, down from 11 in 2022 version), by merging and removing previous recommendations.

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Pitfalls of autoimmune serologic testing

Misuse of laboratory testing may lead to misdiagnoses and mismanagement; this is particulary prevalent when clinicians consider the use of the diagnostic use of  serological autoimmune markers. 

A current review focuses commonly used serologies and autoimmune tests to identify

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Worldwide Trends in Hyperuricemia

A Lancet Rheumatology systematic review shows the prevalence of hyperuricaemia has risen markedly over the past two decades in both men and women, owing to population growth, aging, and increasing age-specific rates

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TYK2 Inhibitor Deucravacitinib FDA Approved for Psoriatic Arthritis

On Friday, March 6th, the FDA approved deucravacitinib (Sotyktu) for the treatment of adults with active psoriatic arthritis (PsA) based on the results of the pivotal Phase 3 POETYK PsA-1 and POETYK PsA-2 clinical trials. Deucravacitinib, an oral selective tyrosine kinase 2 (TYK2)
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Open-access Arthralgia Clinics

The early diagnosis in inflammatory arthritis (IA), particularly rheumatoid arthritis (RA), hinges on efficient referral and screening of arthralgia patients. Yet most rheumatology practices are ill equipped or don't
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Treat-to-Target and Cardiovascular Benefits in Gout

A new user cohort study of 109 504 gout patients, achieving a serum urate level less than 6 mg/dL, was associated with a significantly lower risk of cardiovascular events.

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B cell Targeted CAR-T Therapy for Autoimmune Diseases

EurekAlert!

Chimeric antigen receptor T (CAR-T) cell therapy has emerged as a transformative approach in modern medicine, demonstrating remarkable efficacy in targeting pathogenic B-cell lineages with unprecedented specificity. Originally developed for B cell malignancies, this innovative immunotherapy

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Hydroxychloroquine Lowers SLE and RA Hospitalizations

A population based study from British Columbia, Canada, shows that antimalarial adherence was associated with a lower risk of hospital admission in patients with rheumatoid

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Early vs Delayed Belimumab in Lupus An economic evaluation of early vs delayed use of the Blys inhibitor, belimumab (BEL), in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) has shown both cost-effectiveness and clinical utility of early BEL initiation in active lupus patients. https://t.co/7unHZhR6Dd
Dr. John Cush @RheumNow( View Tweet )

Equivalent Healthcare Outcomes by Nurses and Physicians

With increasing demand for health services in an aging population, serving complex patients with comorbidities, and increasing healthcare costs, the question of whether nurses can substitute for physicians was addressed by a recent Cochrane review.

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Supportive vs Flexible Footwear in Hip Osteoarthritis

Do shoes make a difference in osteoarthritis (OA)? Common advice often suggests that stable supportive shoes can improve arthritis symptoms in the knee, but does this apply to hip osteoarthritis?

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