Articles By Jack Cush, MD
Cimzia Limits Xray Progression in Axial Spondyloarthritis
The RAPID-axSpA study of ankylosing spondylitis (AS) and non-radiographic axial spondyloarthritis (nr-axSpA) patients showed that certolizumab pegol (CZP) treatment yielded rapid clinical improvement with limited radiographic progression and MRI inflammation at the sacroiliiac (SI) joint over 4 years.
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Problems with Biologic Drug Storage
Is your patient’s refrigerator the problem with the inefficacy of biologic therapies? Studies show most patients don't store their biologics correctly, which may be a source of limited drug efficacy.
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Weight Loss Linked to RA Improvement
By retrospectively reviewing electronic health record (EHR) data, Kreps et al found that rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients who lost >5 kg of weight were three times more likely to demonstrate improvement in disease activity.
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The RheumNow Week in Review - 19 January 2018
The RheumNow Week in Review discusses the past week's news, journal articles and highlights from RheumNow.com. This week's report covers the rising cost of adalimumab, infections in myositis, phyisician burnout, biologics in Still's disease and weight loss benefits in RA.
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Two Types of Osteoarthritis Based on Cartilage Studies
A report from Annals of Rheumatic Diseases suggests that osteoarthritis (OA) may be two distinct diseases based on genetic studies of articular cartilage. (Citation source: https://buff.ly/2mNtUsL).
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Rheumatology Physician Burnout and Depression
The 2018 Medscape Physician Burnout and Depression report shows that 42% of physician respondents report "burnout" and up to 15% experience some sort of depression. In a survey of 15,543 doctors from 29 specialties, they found highest burnout rates in critical care and neurologists (48%), family medicine (47%), ob/gyns and internists (46%). Lowest rates were seen in pathology and dermatology (32%), and plastic surgery (23%). What did rheumatologists report?
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IL-1 and IL-6 Inhibition Preferred in Systemic JIA
Since 2000, the German Biologics register (BiKeR) has prospectively enrolled children with juvenile idiopathic arthritis to assess outcomes with biologic therapies. A new report evaluates the efficacy and safety of etanercept (ETA), tocilizumab (TOC) and the interleukin-1 inhibitors (anakin
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Salt Drives Gut-Brain Connection via IL-17
A study from Nature Neuroscience shows that a high salt diet may mediate neurovascular disease by altering microbiome and the expansion of TH17 cells in the small intestine, thereby increasing plasma interleukin-17 (IL-17) and its subsequent effects on endothelium in the brain.
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Laparoscopic Gastric Sleeve Compared to Bypass Bariatric Surgery
JAMA reports the results of a 5 year Finnish study comparing the results of laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy vs Roux-en-Y gastric bypass and shows that gastric bypass yielded greater weight loss at 5 years, the difference was not statistically significant, in patients with morbid obesity.
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New Rise in Hip Fractures Amongst Women
Reuters reports that the incidence of hip fractures in older women in the U.S. is rising after more than a decade of decline, according to a large new study of Medicare recipients.
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