A study from Peene et al. found that patients with primary Sjögren’s disease experienced significant improvements in systemic disease activity and symptoms when treated with intravenous efgartigimod alfa-fcab.
Although dryness and other symptoms of Sjögren’s disease continue to vex patients, the prospect of new treatments and a recent name change demonstrate advances in patient care.
Nipocalimab, an investigational monoclonal antibody that blocks FcRn and reduces levels of circulating immunoglobulin G (IgG) antibodies, has received the FDA’s breakthrough therapy designation for the treatment of Sjögren’s disease.
Over 50% of patients with systemic sclerosis (SSc) develop interstitial lung disease (ILD), and rheumatologists have long recognized this major cause of morbidity and mortality.1 Sindhu R. Johnson, MD, PhD, professor of medicine at the University of Toronto, Canada, and director of the Toronto Scleroderma Program, notes that more recent studies have increased our awareness…
Lucy Masto, BS, Medha Barbhaiya, MD, MPH, Caroline H. Siegel, MD, MS, Lisa R. Sammaritano, MD, & Michael D. Lockshin, MD |
Undifferentiated connective tissue disease (UCTD) is a diagnosis given to patients who do not fulfill current classification criteria for named connective tissue diseases (CTD)—systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), rheumatoid arthritis (RA), systemic sclerosis (SSc), or Sjögren’s disease—but who nonetheless have clinical signs and symptoms and serological evidence of autoimmune CTDs. In 1980 LeRoy et al. were…
Clinicians should not rely on glucocorticoids as a first-line treatment of SARD-ILD in patients with systemic sclerosis, according to a strong recommendation in a new ILD treatment guideline from the ACR and CHEST. The guideline is one of two addressing the screening, monitoring and treatment of patients with interstitial lung disease (ILD) secondary to systemic autoimmune rheumatic diseases (SARDs).
Small fiber neuropathy is a common form of peripheral neuropathy with multiple potential etiologies and a varied clinical presentation. It can’t be detected by nerve conduction studies, making it an elusive and often overlooked entity. Small fiber neuropathy is well documented in several rheumatic diseases, and its symptom burden can profoundly affect quality of life….
The Case A 47-year-old woman presented with a one-year history of bilateral submandibular gland swelling, mild symptoms of xerostomia and xerophthalmia and arthralgias in her fingers. A review of systems was otherwise unremarkable. On physical examination, her submandibular glands on both sides were enlarged and had a firm texture. Her parotid glands were normal, as…