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An official publication of the ACR and the ARP serving rheumatologists and rheumatology professionals

E. Coli Linked to Crohn’s Disease-Associated Spondyloarthritis

Will Boggs, MD  |  

NEW YORK (Reuters Health)—An adherent-invasive E. coli pathotype present in the bowel may contribute to the development of Crohn’s disease-associated spondyloarthritis, researchers say. “Clinical symptoms, including extra-intestinal manifestations, in Crohn’s disease offer a portal into the microbial, immune, and genetic mechanisms underlying disease pathogenesis,” Dr. Randy S. Longman from Weill Cornell Medical College in New…

Prescription-Drug Monitoring Cuts Doctor-Shopping for Painkillers

Ronnie Cohen  |  

(Reuters Health)—State programs that require physicians to check drug registries before writing prescriptions appeared to slash the odds of doctor-shopping for opioid pain relievers, a new study found. “Our study shows that prescription-drug monitoring programs are a promising component of a multifaceted strategy to address the opioid epidemic,” Ryan Mutter, one of the study authors,…

UnitedHealth Sued by U.S. Over Medicare Charges

Reuters Staff  |  

(Reuters) – The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has joined a whistleblower lawsuit against UnitedHealth Group Inc. that claims the country’s largest health insurer and its units and affiliates overcharged Medicare hundreds of millions of dollars, a law firm representing the whistleblower said on Thursday. “We reject these more than five-year-old claims and will contest…

Intraocular Vancomycin Associated with Hemorrhagic Occlusive Retinal Vasculitis

Lorraine L. Janeczko  |  

NEW YORK (Reuters Health)—Intraocular vancomycin may lead to potentially blinding hemorrhagic occlusive retinal vasculitis (HORV), a new study suggests. “The importance of this study was to present in a number of patients overwhelming evidence that rarely, intraocular vancomycin is associated with sight-threatening retinal vascular occlusion,” says lead author Dr. Andre J. Witkin of Tufts Medical…

FDA Approves Valeant’s Drug to Treat Plaque Psoriasis

Reuters Staff  |  

(Reuters)—The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc.’s brodalumab (Siliq) to treat adults with moderate to severe plaque psoriasis. Brodalumab is administered as an injection. Brodalumab is intended for patients who are candidates for systemic therapy or phototherapy and have failed to respond, or have stopped responding to other systemic therapies,…

Celecoxib Is a Safe Treatment for Arthritis

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A study compared celecoxib with ibuprofen and naproxen to determine its cardiovascular safety, as well as gastrointestinal and renal outcomes, in patients with rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis. The results showed that celecoxib met all prespecified noninferiority requirements and is as safe as other non-selective NSAIDs…

Weak Thigh Muscles Tied to Knee Osteoarthritis in Women

Lisa Rapaport  |  

(Reuters Health)—Women with weaker thigh muscles may be more likely to develop knee osteoarthritis, a recent study suggests. Women with lower knee extensor strength were 47 percent more likely to develop knee arthritis than women who had stronger knee extensors, the study found. Weakness in the knee flexor muscles was associated with 41 percent greater…

Switch to Biosimilar Infliximab for IBD Slashes Drug Costs

Reuters Staff  |  

NEW YORK—Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) patients can be safely switched from originator infliximab to biosimilar infliximab using a managed-switching program, U.K. research shows. “Thus far, there does not appear to be any significant difference between the two infliximab products in terms of drug persistence, side effects, adverse reactions, disease activity, or blood tests, but ongoing…

Quality Update Reporting Changes under MACRA

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With the termination of the Sustainable Growth Rate formula through the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015 (MACRA), clinicians who participate in Medicare Part B will now be reimbursed through a new payment model called the Quality Payment Program (QPP). How It Works The QPP rewards the delivery of high-quality patient care via…