Articles By Jack Cush, MD
Who Should Pay for Drug 'Take-Back' Programs
Unused pills and prescriptions pose a significant safety risk in the home and may contribute to dosing errors or inadvertent drug use. The issue has led the DEA to sponsor national drug disposal programs and local municipalities have followed with similar programs. At issue is who shoul
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FDA Outlines its Guidance for Biosimilars
The FDA has released its guidance document on biosimilar development, stating that this represents its current thinking and may not be the final document. The document was published last week and will be instrumental in the development of biosimilar products in this country. In the
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Time for a New War on Drugs (Their Prices, That Is)
Biologics are not only expensive, their costs have continued to rise. This is not only true for rheumatology, as other specialties have unique biopharmaceuticals that have changed prescribing paradigms. Jim Davis of AdverseEvents.com wri
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Adjuvant Herpes Zoster Subunit Vaccine is 97% Effective in Adults
The hazards of live virus vaccines are familiar to those who manage immunosuppression in the setting of inflammatory or autoimmune disease. One in three adults will contract "shingles" (VZV) infection in their lifetime. Given the pain and mobidity associated with this infection, the
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Drug-Induced Lupus is Rare with TNF inhibitor Therapy
Drug-induced lupus (DIL) has been associated with all TNF inhibitors. Early rates suggested this may be between 0.04 - 0.06 events per 100 patient-years or roughtly 5 per 1000 patient-years.
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Real World Biologic Success in Systemic JIA
A retrospective review of 77 SoJIA patients revealed that 50-70% achieved inactive disease or remission when treated with IL-1 inhibitors (anakinra, canakinumab). Good responses were seen with tocilizumab or abatacept, but only 8% responded to etanercept.
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Hot Stuff Part II: Current Status and Recommendations on Vaccines and Biologics
Part II highlights from the Cleveland Clinic's Biologic Therapies Summit.
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Medicare Spends $2.5 billion on Prescription Nexium in 2013
Medicare released its list of the most costly medicines presribed in 2013.
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May is Lyme Disease Awareness Month
Lyme disease is a multisystem disease caused by the spirochete Borrelia burgdorferi. The organism is transmitted through the bite of certain species of blacklegged ticks (Ixodes spp.).
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DRESS Trial Shows TNFi Dose Reduction is Possible - Without Major Flares
Can TNF inhibitor therapy be withdrawn in RA patients who are in remission? The DRESS trial reports the results of randomized trial of 180 RA patients taking either etanercept or adalimumab. Patients were randomly assigned to either usual care (no dose reduction) or a stepwise increase
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