News
ICYMI: Allopurinol Safety in CKD Patients
A study in the Annals of Internal Medicine reports chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients can be safely treated with allopurinol without an increased risk of mortality.
ICYMI: Update on Axial SpA at EULAR 2022
This year at EULAR 2022, there were important and interesting topics in Axial Spondyloarthritis (AxSpA). These are my picks of abstracts from the conference.
What Worries You, Masters You (7.1.2022)
Dr. Jack Cush reviews recent news, regulatory and guideline updates from the past week on RheumNow.com. Studies on methotrexate use, COVID vaccination, Supplements and vitamins, and arthrocentesis despite anticoagulation are discussed.
Novel Anti-TNF Shines in Rheumatoid Arthritis Trial
MedPage Today
A new way of inhibiting tumor necrosis factor (TNF) for treating rheumatoid arthritis showed strong results in a phase II/III clinical trial, researchers said.
Placebo Works Best in Combination
Analysis of two large clinical trial datasets shows that placebo response rates in randomised controlled trials (RCTs) of patients with rheumatoid arthritis are better when the patient continued background methotrexate (MTX).
New Updated GRAPPA Psoriatic Arthritis Recommendations
The GRAPPA (Group for Research and Assessment of Psoriasis and Psoriatic Arthritis) treatment recommendations have been updated and the 2021 evidence-based guidance is rich in treatment recommendations based on the key disease "domains" - peripheral arthritis, axial disease, enthesitis, dactylitis, skin and nail psoriasis; with new PsA related domains uveitis and inflammatory bowel disease.
Gabapentin Implicated in Overdose Deaths
Recent FDA and MMWR warnings suggest that gabapentin was present and implicated in almost 10% of US overdose deaths between 2019 and 2020. This CDC report also stated that gabapentin was the cause of the death in half of these cases.
HCQ for RA: Not a Great Idea?
MedPage Today
Hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) appeared less safe from a cardiovascular standpoint than methotrexate in older patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), analysis of Medicare data indicated.
Are You Wasting Money on Supplements or Vitamins?
The US Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) has updated its recommendations regarding the efficacy of supplements or multivitamins for reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease, cancer, and mortality in the general adult population.
Inferior IL-17 Inhibitor Responses in Psoriatic Women
Pooled data from two large ixekizumab (IXE) trials show that male patients had greater clinical responses than did female patients with psoriatic arthritis are largely unexplored. Reasons for this differential treatment responses to an interleukin-17A inhibitor (IXE) between male and female patients is unexplained.
Two Week Methotrexate Hold with COVID-19 Vaccination
A cohort study of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients evaluated immunogenicity of COVID vaccination with and without holding methotrexate (MTX) for and 2-weeks and showed better immunogenicity, but more RA flares with the second MTX withdrawal.
