Although rituximab is not indicated for adults with SLE, a recent review suggests that it may be safe and effective for treating pediatric SLE. The review found that rituximab improved renal function and reduced proteinuria in pediatric patients. It may also prevent relapse and improve disease activity…
This year the ARHP Clinical Focus Course brings together experts in the field to provide an interprofessional approach to the management of systematic lupus erythematosus (SLE) to improve patient outcomes. The daylong course, titled Systemic Lupus Erythematosus: Taming the Wolf—Salient Lessons from Practice and Research, which is offered on Nov. 4, will provide a case-based…
Although systemic lupus erythematosus still does not have a definite cause or cure, rheumatologists and researchers over the past 50 years have witnessed and contributed to a great deal of progress that helps patients, says Peter H. Schur, MD, director emeritus of the Lupus Center, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, and professor, Harvard Medical School, Boston. Dr. Schur’s…
A comparison study of the serious infection burden among patients with lupus found no major differences in patients treated with three separate immunosuppressive drug regimens. Given that serious infections are among the leading causes of hospitalizations and death in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), researchers investigated whether the incident rates differed in patients who…
In a recent clinical trial, voclosporin proved safe and effective at both low and high doses as a treatment for lupus nephritis…
New research has examined the risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD), as well as myocardial infarction and ischemic stroke, for patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) in a large-scale population-based study. Researchers found that patients with SLE have a greater than two-fold increased risk of developing CVD. This risk is greatest during the first year after diagnosis and remains elevated for at least five years…
New research has linked a TNFSF13B variant and B cell activating factor (BAFF), a common therapeutic target, with multiple sclerosis and systemic lupus erythematosus. The variant is a disease-risk allele associated with increased levels of soluble BAFF…
Most SLE clinical trials continue standard background medications being taken by patients at entry, based on assumptions that this minimizes the risk of serious flares and that immunologic interference is minimal. These assumptions are not evidence based, but eliminating polypharmacy in trials studying patients with active lupus remains controversial. These researchers tested the withdrawal of immunosuppressants to make SLE trial results more interpretable…
Multi-disciplinary care may be a slowly growing trend. One clinic in Ohio is raising the bar for lupus patients, serving as a one-stop center for diagnostic testing, imaging services and physical therapy. The clinic is also able to conduct basic research to advance lupus treatment and tests…
WASHINGTON, D.C.—Conference goers who braved the final day of the 2016 ACR/ARHP Annual Meeting were awarded for their stamina by learning about issues relating to the damage caused by systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) during the session Systemic Lupus Erythematosus—Clinical Aspects and Treatment V: Damage and Morbidity. Minimizing Damage: Early Use of GC-Sparing Strategies Jayne Little,…