Could your lupus patients benefit from limiting exposure to chemicals at home and in the medical environment? It’s a strong possibility, according to the preliminary findings of a research team investigating DNA methylation disruption in patients with SLE…
New research suggests the downregulation of CD3ζ contributes to the altered function of NK cells in SLE patients, which may contribute to the increased risk of viral infections in these patients…
(Reuters Health)—Patients with acute pain from osteoporosis damage to the spine don’t experience any more relief from surgery to inject cement into cracked or broken vertebrae than they would with a sham procedure, a recent trial in The Netherlands suggests. All of the patients in the experiment had compression fractures, which can happen when osteoporosis…
Beginning in June 2018, UnitedHealthcare (UHC) will implement their risk adjustment data validation (RADV) audit program. UHC states that through the mandatory requirement by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Medicare Advantage health plans will be reviewed for supporting medical documentation to check for accurately reported patient data. UHC will send requests…
In 2005, an ACR Workforce Study estimated the adult rheumatology workforce to be 4,946 providers and projected growth of only 1.2% by 2025, resulting in a projected deficit of 2,576 rheumatologists considering the estimated need. According to the 2015 Workforce Study, between 2005 and 2015, the percentage of internal medicine residents entering rheumatology has remained…
(Reuters)—The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said on Wednesday that it had approved Pfizer Inc’s drug, Xeljanz, to treat adults with moderate-to-severe active ulcerative colitis. The effectiveness of Xeljanz (tofacitinib) in treating ulcerative colitis was shown in three controlled clinical trials, including two trials that showed the drug caused disease remission in about 17-18 percent…
WASHINGTON (Reuters)—President Donald Trump on Wednesday said he expects major drug companies to slash prices on their products in two weeks, but did not provide details on which companies would do so or how such reductions would be made. Health care lobbyists in Washington said they were caught by surprise and had no idea what…
LONDON (Reuters)—Cut-price copies of expensive biotech drugs promise to slash the cost of treating serious diseases, including cancer, in rich and poor countries alike -but uneven regulation has created a lopsided market. Now the World Health Organization (WHO) is stepping in to assess the quality of such so-called biosimilars, offering a global stamp of approval…
(Reuters)—Recro Pharma’s IV meloxicam, a non-opioid injection, did not get approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration because the agency said the drug’s pain-relieving effect did not meet its expectations. The company said it plans to meet with the FDA to find solutions. Unlike the drug’s oral version, which has been on the market…
ZURICH (Reuters)—Novartis said its Sandoz division received approval from the European Commission for its biosimilar Zessly (infliximab) in gastroenterological, rheumatological and dermatological diseases. Zessly is approved for use in all indications of the reference medicine including rheumatoid arthritis, adult and pediatric Crohn’s disease, adult and pediatric ulcerative colitis, ankylosing spondylitis, psoriatic arthritis and plaque psoriasis,…