Rheumatoid Arthritis

Tofacitinib Not Tied to More Malignancies in RA Patients

David Douglas | July 17, 2015

NEW YORK (Reuters Health)—The oral Janus kinase inhibitor tofacitinib (Xeljanz, Pfizer) does not increase the risk of malignancies, according to pooled data from more than 5000 rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients. In an April 22 online paper in Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases, Dr. Lisy Wang of Pfizer, Groton, Connecticut, and colleagues noted that in RA…

Family History Not Linked to Clinical Presentation, Treatment Response of RA

Will Boggs, MD | July 16, 2015

NEW YORK (Reuters Health)—Having a family history of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) does not appear to influence the clinical presentation or treatment response of RA to standard medications, researchers from Sweden report. “At first we were a bit surprised by our findings,” Dr. Thomas Frisell from Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm told Reuters Health by email. “Patients…

Personal Beliefs Affect Medication Adherence for RA Patients

Richard Quinn | July 10, 2015

A recent British study concluded that determining a rheumatoid arthritis patient’s personal beliefs about medication could aid rheumatologists in regularly addressing medication adherence during visits.

E-Learning in Physiotherapy

Arthritis Care & Research | July 7, 2015

A physiotherapy-specific, Web-based e-learning platform, “RAP-el,” was studied to determine its effectiveness in assisting physiotherapists with the best-practice management of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). It was shown to improve self-reported confidence, likely practice behaviors and satisfaction in physiotherapists’ ability to manage people with RA, and improve their clinical knowledge in several areas…

Nurses May Be Key to Long-Term Clinical Trial Success

Lara C. Pullen, PhD | July 6, 2015

After completing a 10-year clinical trial examining treatment strategies for rheumatoid arthritis, Dutch researchers used a questionnaire to determine the study conditions and individual motivators that kept 60% of patients participating long term…

EULAR 2015: What’s New in RA Research

Thomas R. Collins | July 1, 2015

ROME, Italy—Even with classification criteria that have been updated and refined over time, rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is still a diagnosis that ultimately has to be made with clinical judgment, said Ronald van Vollenhoven, MD, PhD, professor of medicine and chief of clinical therapy research in inflammatory diseases at the Karolinska University in Sweden. His remarks…

EULAR 2015: The Biology of Fatigue

Thomas R. Collins | July 1, 2015

ROME, Italy—Fatigue, a problem experienced frequently by patients with rheumatic diseases, is best thought of as a survival mechanism and as a single phenomenon, not a condition that comes in a variety of forms, an expert said in a session at EULAR 2015, the annual congress of the European League Against Rheumatism (EULAR). Gene Regulated…

Guselkumab Studied to Treat RA & Plaque Psoriasis

Michele B. Kaufman, PharmD, BCGP | July 1, 2015

In a Phase 2 study, researchers evaluated the effectiveness of guselkumab to alleviate symptoms in patients with active RA suffering from tender and swollen joints.

Are Solar Flares an Overlooked Factor in Autoimmune Disease?

Lara C. Pullen, PhD | June 22, 2015

New research by physicists from Johns Hopkins University explores the correlation between the sun’s geomagnetic activity and the incidence of giant cell arteritis and rheumatoid arthritis, including geographic latitudes that put residents at highest risk.

Cardiovascular Abnormalities Seen in Treatment-Naive RA Patients

Anne Harding | June 20, 2015

NEW YORK (Reuters Health)—A new study has identified myocardial and vascular abnormalities in patients with newly diagnosed, treatment-naive rheumatoid arthritis (RA). “The study suggests cardiac abnormalities already exist in newly diagnosed patients with RA,” senior author Dr. Maya Buch of the University of Leeds in the UK told Reuters Health by email. “Specifically, a reduction…