Rare Diseases

RheumNow Podcast – Quackademia (10.15.2021)

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

Still’s Disease Following COVID-19 Vaccination

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Both systemic onset juvenile idiopathic arthritis (sJIA) and adult-onset Still’s disease are acquired autoinflammatory disorders of uncertain etiology. Yet recent reports of AOSD onset and flare following COVID-19 vaccinations may have important mechanistic implications.

Clinical Associations with Myositis Antibodies

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While myositis-specific autoantibodies (MSAs) and myositis-associated autoantibodies (MAAs) may have prognostic value through their clinical associations, many patients will not have them and overall, they are poorly predictive of a malignancy risk. 

Lupus Frailty Index Predicts Organ Damage

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Patients with longstanding systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) who were considered frail were more likely to accrue disease damage over time, a secondary analysis of data from a Chicago lupus cohort found.

On a multivariate analysis that controlled for age, race, and duration of

Early Antibiotic Use Increases JIA Risk

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A population based Swedish study of birth records shows that antibiotic exposure in first three years of life to be associated with a future risk of juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA), although infections during fetal life or childhood did not increase risk of JIA.

Post-Arthroscopic Increase in Septic Arthritis

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A longitudinal study from Iceland shows an increasing number of native joint infections (NJI), with iatrogenic, postarthroscopic infections being of particular concern.

Between 2003-2017 they identified 299 NJI (40 children and 259 adults) with more infections in men (33% women vs 67

RheumNow Podcast – I Wanna New Drug.V2 (9.24.2021)

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Almost three years ago to the day, I did a podcast entitled, "I wanna new drug." As I go over this week's podcast, I want to say it again. I want a new drug safe enough to use during pregnancy, for PMR, for GVHD, and more. I'm going to cover these, and other topics including lupus, COVID

11 Drugs That Cause Arthritis

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This is the #1 question I get from new consults: “How did I get arthritis?”

But as the aching are asking, they are really thinking these joint complaints must be due to something.

High Comorbidity Rates with Inclusion Body Myositis

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Inclusion body myositis (IBM) patients tend to be older than those with idiopathic inflammatory myositis (IIM), but the scope of disease beyond their myositis is not appreciated. Now, a population-based, case-control study suggests both a lower overall survival and high comorbidity burden in

Worrisome Maternal Mortality with COVID-19 Infection

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Maternal and fetal outcomes during the COVID-19 pandemic have not been well studied; yet a new retrospective study from Mexico indicates that during the pandemic maternal mortality increased by nearly 57%, with COVID-19 as the cause in 23% of cases.

This surveillance study examined

Canakinumab Use in Periodic Febrile Disorders

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A retrospective records review of patients with periodic fever syndromes (PFS)  receiving IL-1 inhibitor treatment with canakinumab (CAN), shows CAN to be effective and safe in a variety of PFS patients.

Effect of Diet on COVID Outcomes

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A smartphone-based symptom study of COVID-19 patients has shown that a healthy plant-based diet was associated with lower risk and severity of COVID-19, especially amongst those living in areas with higher socioeconomic deprivation.

Data was collected from 592,571 individuals

Risk Factors Associated with Systemic Sclerosis Hospitalization

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A retrospective study of systemic sclerosis patients shows that acute hospitalization and mortality were not uncommon and were often linked to SSc-related lung disease.

Record review of 95 SSc patients from a single-centre cohort seen between 2010 and 2020 found that over half (53

Lymphoma in RA: Disease Activity Matters

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Among patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), the strongest risk factors for the development of lymphoma were disease activity and severity, French researchers found.

In a multivariate analysis, having a high Disease Activity Score in 28 joints (DAS28) at baseline conferred twice the risk for

COVID Breakthrough Infections in Rheumatic Patients

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Analysis of records from the Mass General Brigham healthcare system in the Boston area, shows that breakthrough infections (after receiving SARS-CoV-2 vaccines) in patients with systemic autoimmune rheumatic diseases (SARDs) are not uncommon, and may be severe or fatal.

Researchers

Not All Immunosuppression Alters Vaccine Immunogenicity

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Chronic inflammatory disease (CID) patients are urged to receive the COVID-19 vaccines; but when a cohort of CID patients treated with immunosuppressive medications were given an mRNA-based SARS-CoV-2 vaccination, only those treated with glucocorticoids and B cell depleting therapies (BCDT)

TNF Inhibitor Induced IgA Vasculitis in IBD

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A new descriptive series shows an uncommon association between IgA vasculitis (IgAV) and inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD), with most cases interestingly arising after  or during anti-TNF-α therapy.

A retrospectively analysis of the GETAID and FVSG networks identified, 43 patients

RheumNow Podcast – COVID Marching Amidst the Madness (8.27.2021)

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We have a lot of news, information and approvals to review and discuss, though I need to begin with what's weighing heavily on my mind. After, we'll dive into what we learned this week.

Rheumatic Events With Checkpoint Inhibitors: Tumor Type Matters

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Among the factors that were associated with an increased risk for the development of rheumatic immune-related adverse events following cancer treatment with immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) was the type of malignancy involved, a large case-control study found.

FDA Approves First COVID-19 Vaccine

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Today, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the first COVID-19 vaccine, manufactured by Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 the vaccine, now marketed as Comirnaty (koe-mir’-na-tee), is approved for the prevention of COVID-19 disease in individuals 16 years of age and older.

This

Tocilizumab in Refractory Skin and Joint Scleroderma

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The interleukin-6 inhibitor, tocilizumab (TCZ), was studied in a cohort of difficult systemic sclerosis (SSc)  and was shown to be effective in refractory joint and skin disease with good long-term retention rates and disease stabilization.

TCZ is currently FDA approved for use in SSc

Booster Shots for Rheumatology Patients on Immunosuppressive Medications

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ATLANTA – The CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices today recommended that rheumatology patients being actively treated with high-dose corticosteroids, alkylating agents, antimetabolites, TNF blockers, and other biologic agents that are immunosuppressive or immunomodulatory receive

RheumNow Podcast – Booster Shots for COVID (8.13.2021)

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

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