Conditions

Subcategories:Axial Spondyloarthritis Gout and Crystalline Arthritis Guidelines Myositis Osteoarthritis and Bone Disorders Other Rheumatic Conditions Pain Syndromes Pediatric Conditions Psoriatic Arthritis Rheumatoid Arthritis Sjögren’s Disease Soft Tissue Pain Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Systemic Sclerosis Vasculitis

Phase 3 Trials: Secukinumab for Psoriatic Arthritis & DA-DKP for OA

Michele B. Kaufman, PharmD, BCGP | October 14, 2015

In a global Phase 3 trial, subcutaneous secukinumab proved safe and effective in patients with psoriatic arthritis. Also, a version of aspartyl-alanyl diketopiperazine, a biologic for knee OA, has entered Phase 3 trials…

FOCIS 2015: Key Protein Found to Control Trafficking of Toll-like Receptors

Catherine Kolonko | October 13, 2015

Gregory Barton, PhD, professor of immunology and pathogenesis, University of California, Berkeley, talked about research on the innate immune system and a key protein involved in the trafficking of a subset of toll-like receptors (TLRs) during FOCIS 2015 in San Diego. To keep the body healthy, the immune system responds constantly to foreign cellular invaders…

FOCIS 2015: Metabolism May Affect Immune System’s Reaction to Disease

Catherine Kolonko | October 13, 2015

How the immune system reacts to potential harm, such as lack of oxygen and inflammation, depends greatly on the human body’s metabolic processes and pathways, according to speakers at FOCIS 2015 in San Diego this past June. During a session devoted to metabolism and the immune system, researchers talked about recent studies that shed light…

FOCIS 2015: Research Increases Understanding of Lupus, RA

Catherine Kolonko | October 13, 2015

The field of rheumatology took center stage when a handful of speakers discussed trends and research during a disease-oriented session of the 2015 Federation of Clinical Immunity Societies (FOCIS 2015) conference held in San Diego in June. Neutrophils in SLE Mariana Kaplan, MD, chief of Systemic Autoimmunity Branch at the National Institute of Arthritis and…

Racial Disparities Result in Unprecedented Differences in Outcomes for SLE Patients

Eric L. Wise, MD, & W. Joseph McCune, MD | October 13, 2015

The differences between Caucasian and minority patients with lupus are striking: In almost all aspects of the disease, black, Hispanic and many Asian lupus patients do poorly compared with their white counterparts. Although racial disparities in outcomes in the practice of medicine are widespread, the scope and degree of the differences in lupus is, with…

Case Report: Interstitial Lung Disease with Positive ANCA Test

Sara Tedeschi, MD | October 13, 2015

“Worst of all is the pain in my calves,” she said. “It feels like burning deep inside.” So began my first encounter with a 69-year-old woman who was referred to rheumatology clinic for evaluation of two months of constitutional symptoms and a positive ANCA test, which had been ordered by her primary care doctor. Her…

Diagnosis, Management of Medication-Induced Osteonecrosis of the Bone

Alessandro Villa, DDS, PhD, MPH, & Sook Bin Woo, DMD, MMSc | October 13, 2015

Prior to the widespread use of bisphosphonates for the management of osteoporosis, multiple myeloma and metastatic cancer to the skeletal system, osteonecrosis of the jawbones was an infrequent condition seen after radiation for oral cancers (osteoradionecrosis) and in chronic odontogenic infections.1 Since the mid-2000s, osteonecrosis of the jawbones has been noted to occur as a…

Secukinumab Effective for Psoriatic Arthritis

Lara C. Pullen, PhD | October 12, 2015

A Phase 3 study found secukinumab may be an effective alternative to anti-TNF therapies for treating psoriatic arthritis, suggesting interleukin 17A may play a role in the disease…

Selena Gomez Says Suffered from Lupus, Underwent Chemotherapy

Reuters Staff | October 10, 2015

(Reuters)—Pop singer and actress Selena Gomez has revealed in an interview that she was diagnosed with the autoimmune disease lupus, which led to her canceling the end of her tour in 2013, but that the disease is now in remission. “I was diagnosed with lupus, and I’ve been through chemotherapy,” Gomez, 23, told Billboard magazine….

Treating IBD with Anti-TNF Tied to Higher Risk of Demyelinating Disease

Will Boggs, MD | October 9, 2015

NEW YORK (Reuters Health)—Treating inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) with tumor necrosis factor (TNF) inhibitors is associated with a doubling of the risk of central nervous system demyelinating disease, researchers from Denmark report. “Based on the current evidence anti-TNF should be used cautiously in patients with an own or family history of demyelinating disease,” Dr. Nynne…