Patients under the care of the U.S. Veterans Affairs who were older, non-white and had more comorbidities were less frequently given biologic initiation therapy to treat their rheumatoid arthritis (RA), according to a recent study. Researchers sought to identify predictors of greater use of biologic therapies, as well as factors associated with persistent use of…
Search results for: Biologics
Rheumatoid Arthritis Patients on Biologics Remain At Risk of Infection
AMSTERDAM—With new therapies coming into the marketplace, researchers are working to tease out the risk of infection for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients. Existing data suggest the risk of infections—even fatal ones—is real. But over time, improvements have taken hold, particularly for tuberculosis, according to an infectious disease expert at EULAR: the Annual European Congress of…
Investigators Assess Infection Risk with RA Biologics
Due to a range of factors, determining the precise infection risk posed by new biologic therapies to RA patients is difficult. But progress has been made and health registries may be helpful, said Olivier Lortholary, MD, PhD, during the 2018 EULAR: Annual European Congress of Rheumatology…
DMARDs & Biologics Info for Rheumatology Nurses
SAN DIEGO—In a presentation on what rheumatology nurses should know in their daily practice about disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs) at the 2017 ACR/ARHP Annual Meeting Nov. 3–8, Jessica Farrell, PharmD, highlighted the importance of educating and counseling patients about the range of treatments and applications for rheumatologic conditions. Dr. Farrell, a clinical pharmacist at the…
Clinical Guidelines for Sjögren’s Syndrome Focus on Biologics, Fatigue, Inflammatory Musculoskeletal Pain
The first clinical practice guidelines for Sjögren’s syndrome have been released, the culmination of an initiative by the Sjögren’s Syndrome Foundation.1 These standard-of-care recommendations are intended to provide consistency in practice patterns, inform coverage and reimbursement policies, lead to the design and implementation of educational programs, highlight the needs for future research and fill a…
Sanofi to Invest Further in Biologics
PARIS (Reuters)—Sanofi announced plans to invest 600 million euros ($673 million) annually over the next two to three years in the field of biologics production, an area of strong growth potential. In contrast to most drugs that are chemically synthesized, many biologics are produced using living cells. They are seen as a promising answer in…
U.S. Top Court Debates Making Copycat Biologics Available Sooner
WASHINGTON (Reuters)—U.S. Supreme Court justices on Wednesday struggled over whether to speed up the time it takes to bring to the market copycat versions of biologic drugs, expensive medicines that can generate billions of dollars in sales for drug makers. The nine justices heard arguments in an appeal by Novartis AG of a lower court…
Recommendations for Sjögren’s Syndrome: How to Address Biologics & Musculoskeletal Pain
The clinical practice guidelines for managing Sjögren’s syndrome, developed by the Sjögren’s Syndrome Foundation with the ACR, were designed to improve quality and consistency of care. In total, 19 recommendations were agreed on, which include managing the rheumatic and systemic aspects of the disease. Recommendations include a decision tree for the use of DMARDs for inflammatory musculoskeletal pain, use of self-care measures and exercise to reduce fatigue, and the use of rituximab in selected clinical settings for oral and ocular dryness…
When Starting Biologics for RA, Disease Severity Predicts Likelihood of Remission
NEW YORK (Reuters Health)—After starting biologic therapy for rheumatoid arthritis (RA), patients with higher disease activity at baseline achieved greater improvements in measures of disease activity than those with lower levels of disease, but they were less likely to achieve remission or even low disease activity, according to a new real world analysis of registry data….
Tips, Resources to Help Rheumatologists Educate Patients on Biologics and Biosimilars
Rheumatologists are accustomed to educating patients about medications—but biologic medications require some additional time and discussion. “Biologics are inherently more complex [than other medications], and there are multiple issues to consider before initiating treatment,” says K. “Kwas” Huston, MD, The Center for Rheumatic Disease, Kansas City, Mo. “This includes the patient’s disease activity, prior medications…
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