On behalf of the ACR, I wish you happiness, prosperity and, above all, good health in this new decade. Now that the holidays are behind us and 2020 has launched, the ACR’s dedicated volunteers and staff are working collaboratively to achieve many ambitious initiatives to ensure the College’s dynamic and bright future. A few weeks…
I nodded, gravely. I was recently privileged to attend a symposium on eosinophils. I realize that this sounds odd. And it was odd, mainly because I’m not an eosinophil expert. Still, they were in need of someone who knew something about eosinophilic granulomatosis with polyangiitis, so I managed to sneak in through the back door….
The idiopathic inflammatory myopathies (IIM) encompass eight categories: 1) dermatomyositis (DM) in adults, 2) juvenile dermatomyositis, 3) amyopathic DM, 4) cancer-associated DM, 5) polymyositis, 6) immune-mediated necrotizing myopathy, 7) inclusion body myositis, and 8) overlap myositis.1 These categories help classify the myopathies based on clinical and histologic features. The incidence of IIM is estimated at…
NEW YORK (Reuters Health)—The osteoporosis drug denosumab is associated with a higher incidence of serious infections compared with placebo, but the risk is similar to comparator drugs, a systematic review and meta-analysis reveals. Talia Diker-Cohen, MD, PhD, of Tel Aviv University, and colleagues searched the literature through May 2019 for randomized controlled trials of denosumab…
Often, rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients struggle with fatigue, and the cause of the fatigue remains unclear. Past research suggests RA-related fatigue may be moderately improved by physical activity. A recent narrative review supports these prior findings, noting that patients also benefit moderately from psychosocial interventions…
Predictive data models can be used to identify when patients may miss their appointments, reduce these incidents and increase scheduling efficiency. Here are some tips for the physician practice setting…
In a systematic literature review, researchers found that rheumatoid arthritis patients taking etanercept were less likely to discontinue their treatment than patients using any of five other tumor necrosis factor inhibitors…
NEW YORK (Reuters)—Novartis AG, Merck & Co Inc. and Allergan Plc. were among companies that raised U.S. prices on more than 100 prescription medicines on Jan. 4, bringing the tally to 445 drugs that will cost more in 2020, according to data analyzed by healthcare research firm 3 Axis Advisors. That is above the average…
NEW YORK (Reuters Health)—The risk of malignancy in patients with systemic necrotizing vasculitis varies according to the treatment received, according to an analysis of five randomized controlled trials. Previous studies reported an increased risk of malignancy in patients with systemic necrotizing vasculitis, and a more recent study from the European Vasculitis Study Group, based on…
(Reuters Health)—U.S. insurers and providers spent more than $800 billion in 2017 on administration, or nearly $2,500 per person—more than four times the per-capita administrative costs in Canada’s single-payer system, a new study finds. Over one-third of all healthcare costs in the U.S. were due to insurance company overhead and provider time spent on billing,…