Baricitinib, an oral Janus kinase (JAK) inhibitor taken once daily, improved signs and symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) in patients who were refractory to other treatments, including tumor necrosis factor (TNF) inhibitors, or other biologic disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs), according to investigators in a placebo-controlled, phase 3 trial reported on recently in the New England Journal of Medicine.
Researchers in a phase 2b study of clazakizumab suggest that this drug may become a new option for treatment of the musculoskeletal effects—but not necessarily skin lesions—associated with psoriatic arthritis (PsA). Treatment for patients with predominant musculoskeletal effects represents an unmet need.
In February 2016, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) published a special report in the New England Journal of Medicine, alerting the medical community, including providers, policymakers, and drug manufacturers, about “the growing epidemic of opioid abuse, addiction, and overdose—an epidemic directly related to the increasingly widespread use of powerful opioid pain medications.”
Lupus is an autoimmune disease that affects multiple parts of the body, and results in the immune system attacking healthy tissues. Symptoms of lupus, including painful joints, red rash, and extreme fatigue, differ from person to person, and appear in the form of a flare. Although symptoms can worsen despite taking medication, certain steps for preventing lupus flares can be beneficial. The following tips include methods for preventing the onset of a flare.
Investigators behind a longitudinal study at a single center identified several risk factors for organ damage in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), and demonstrated that organ damage compromises health-related quality of life (HR-QOL) in these patients. Factors such as preexisting damage at baseline, age, immunosuppressive drug use, cigarette smoking, and higher mean erythrocyte sedimentation and C-reactive protein (CRP) levels were associated with earlier organ damage; some of these risk factors are modifiable.
Although patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) may be at an increased risk for ischemic stroke, researchers in a recent study have concluded that use of tumor necrosis factor inhibitors (TNFis) does not appear to influence the risk of ischemic stroke in this patient population.
People with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) are at increased risk for infection because of inherent immune dysregulation and chronic immunomodulatory therapy. However, uptake of the influenza vaccine (IVX), pneumococcal vaccine (PVX), and herpes zoster vaccine (HZVX) has been suboptimal among this at-risk group.
With the ever-present focus on maintaining a healthy lifestyle, patients with established rheumatoid arthritis (RA) struggle between their ideal lifestyle and the limitations inherent to their condition, according to recent research. Patients also described self-regulation when handling lifestyle habits (eg, guilt and motivation), and reported the importance of companionship.
London, United Kingdom—Rheumatologists are fully aware of the impact of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) on patients’ lives, but underestimate the severity and impact of osteoarthritis (OA), according to the researchers of a study that looked at physician and patient perceptions of global disease status in both conditions.
London, United Kingdom—The search for effective treatments for osteoarthritis (OA) has been elusive, with little or no progress regarding treatments that can slow disease progression. Two studies presented at the 2016 European League Against Rheumatism Annual Congress suggest that treatment with anti–tumor necrosis factor (TNF) agents may have potential in slowing disease progression in patients with hand OA. These are still early days, but together, these studies suggest that anti-TNF agents may find a role in slowing disease progression in patients with hand OA.
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