In a recent study, upadacitinib proved safe and effective to treat rheumatoid arthritis in patients with inadequate responses to conventional synthetic DMARDs…
Search results for: varicella zoster
GSK Wins U.S. Shingles Vaccine Approval, U.K. Nod for Gene Therapy
LONDON (Reuters)—GlaxoSmithKline has won U.S. approval for a new and improved shingles vaccine, the second of three key products for which the British drugmaker expects approval this year. It also secured a recommendation from U.K. cost authorities for a $700,000 gene therapy for so-called “bubble boy” disease—a step forward for the field of fixing faulty…
GlaxoSmithKline’s Shingles Vaccine Gets Approval in Canada
(Reuters)—Canadian health regulators have approved GlaxoSmithKline’s shingles vaccine, the company said on Friday.1 Shingrix, the British pharma company’s shingles vaccine for people aged 50 years or older, was unanimously recommended for approval by a U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) advisory panel last week. Older people are most at risk of an outbreak of shingles,…
Tofacitinib After Live Shingles Vaccination Does Not Impair Immunogenicity
NEW YORK (Reuters Health)—Tofacitinib begun two to three weeks after live zoster vaccination does not impair immunogenicity, and vaccination appears to be safe in patients with pre-existing varicella zoster virus (VZV) immunity, researchers report. Patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) are about twice as likely as healthy adults to develop herpes zoster, or shingles, and the…
Fellows Forum Case Report: Neuromyelitis Optica
Case Presentation The patient was a 42-year-old African American female diagnosed with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) based on the findings of polyarthritis, malar and discoid rash, fatigue, positive double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) ribonucleoprotein and Smith antibodies, and low serum complement levels. Her SLE had been well controlled on hydroxychloroquine 400 mg daily, oral methotrexate 25 mg…
Metagenomic Deep Sequencing for Uveitis Enhances Traditional Diagnostic Testing
Throughout their training and practice, physicians become adept at pattern recognition as a means to efficiently connect and synthesize seemingly disparate laboratory, physical exam, and radiologic and historical findings into a coherent theory for what likely ails the patient sitting in front of them. This inductive method of reasoning is necessary because, based on these…
Not All Infectious Microorganisms Malign Human Immune System
Which came first? The infectious microorganism or a host’s immune resistance against it? Through the millennia, a raging battle has pitted the hordes of infectious agents surrounding us against, arguably, the most complex biologic structure ever created, the finely tuned human immune system. The stakes are high for both sides. For the infectious agent, an…
Research in Temporal Arteritis Suggests Link with Infection, Autoimmune Disease
Temporal arteritis was first described by Sir Jonathan Hutchinson in 1890 in an elderly retired gentleman’s servant who developed red, painful streaks on his temples and was found to have bilaterally swollen temporal arteries with feeble pulses.1 Sir Hutchinson disputed the suggestion that the red streaks were caused by the man’s hat and, instead, called…
Rheumatology Drug Updates
Information on new approvals and medication safety that rheumatologists need to know
Meet the Challenge of Primary CNS Vasculitis
Diagnosis and treatment of this rare and poorly understood condition