Articles By Jack Cush, MD
Lung Preservation with Tocilizumab in Early Systemic Sclerosis
Arthritis & Rheumatology has published the results of a subanalysis from tocilizumab (TCZ) clinical trials showing that Il-6 inhibition was associated with preservation of lung function patients with early systemic sclerosis (SSc).
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RheumNow Podcast – Systemic Sclerosis Pearls (2.19.2021)
Dr. Jack Cush reviews nearly a dozen news and journal reports from the past 2 weeks on RheumNow.com, including the ACR's new COVID-19 vaccine guidance for patients with rheumatic disease.
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High Risk Cancer Profiling with Inflammatory Myositis
A recent metanalysis of studies suggest you may be able to use certain clinical factors to stratify cancer risk in patients with idiopathic inflammatory myopathies (IIMs).
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Avacopan - Is it Really a Win for ANCA-Associated Vasculitis?
The NEJM has reported the results of a study showing that avacopan, a C5a receptor inhibitor, is as effective as steroids at treating patients with antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibody (ANCA)–associated vasculitis (AAV).
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Alveolar Hemorrhage and Mortality in Lupus
Metanalysis of patients with diffuse alveolar hemorrhage (DAH), show this to be a rare and life-threatening complication of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), that is more apt to affect older, severe lupus patients with active infection.
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Checkpoint Inhibitor Use with Pre-existing Autoimmune Disease
Annals of Internal Medicine reports treating advanced melanoma with immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI) in patients with pre-existing autoimmune disease (AID) was as effective and safe in those with AID compared to those without AID, although severe colitis occurred more frequently among pati
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MIRROR Study: Pegloticase With Methotrexate in Uncontrolled Gout
Botson et al has reported that the combination of methotrexate (MTX) and IV pegloticase is safe and effective in patients with uncontrolled gout. This exploratory, open-label clinical trial screened 17 patients and treated 14 patients (all men, 49.3 ± 8.7 years) with IV pegloticase with MTX (15 mg/week) and folic acid (1 mg/day) 4 weeks prior to and throughout pegloticase treatment.
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Weekly Semaglutide for Weight Loss in Adults
NEJM has reported the results of a trial showing semaglutide once weekly plus lifestyle intervention was associated with sustained, weight loss in overweight or obese adults; such that nearly one-third lost over 20% of their body weight.
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ACR Promotes New COVID-19 Vaccine Clinical Guidance for Rheumatic Patients
The American College of Rheumatology has published a draft guidance on the use of COVID-19 vaccination in rheumatic disease and musculoskeletal disease patients, based on the efforts of the North American Task force. The document provides guidance to rheumatology providers on the use of the COVID-19 vaccine and the associated management of RMD patients around the time of vaccination. Here is a summary of the recommendations.
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Synovial Tissue Signature Guiding Targeted IL-6 Therapy in RA
RNA sequencing and classification of RA subsets has proven useful. RNA sequencing-based stratification of RA synovial tissue showed stronger associations with clinical responses compared with histopathological classification. Additionally, for patients with low or absent B-cell lineage expression signature in synovial tissue, tocilizumab is more effective than rituximab.
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