NEW YORK (Reuters Health)—In patients with psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis, the incidence of atrial fibrillation and major adverse cardiovascular events does not differ between treatment with ustekinumab and TNF inhibitors, according to a large observational study. “Given a high cardiovascular risk among patients with psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis,” Seoyoung C. Kim, MD, ScD, MSCE, told…
Myocardial Inflammation Associated with RA Disease Activity
Introduction: Heart failure, a key contributor to cardiovascular disease (CVD) morbidity and mortality, is associated with fewer symptoms and higher (preserved) ejection fraction, but higher mortality rates, in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients than among those in the general population. In the general population, higher levels of circulating proinflammatory cytokines, such as tumor necrosis factor (TNF)…
Galectin-3 May Be a Biomarker for Cardiovascular Disease in RA
Galectin-3 may have potential as a biomarker for the early onset of cardiovascular disease in RA patients, potentially enabling early intervention and deferring the cardiovascular risks associated with RA…
FDA Issues Boxed Warning for Febuxostat & Approves Colchicine for Gout Flare
The FDA has issued a boxed warning for febuxostat after a safety study found an increased risk of heart-related and other death in RA patients…
Safety Risk with Higher Dose Tofacitnib
According to the FDA, an ongoing safety trial found higher dose tofacitinib increased the risks of pulmonary embolism and death in RA patients…
FDA Rejects Novartis Bid to Repurpose Inflammation Drug for Heart Attacks
ZURICH (Reuters)—The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has rejected Novartis’s bid to repurpose a drug now approved for rare inflammatory diseases to be used in a group of heart attack survivors, according to the Swiss drugmaker. The company received an FDA letter turning down its bid to make canakinumab a targeted therapy for those…
Video Education: Patient Outreach Effort Offers Education about Cardiovascular Risks
Experts in rheumatoid arthritis, cardiovascular health and education have joined forces to create a video intervention designed to help patients understand their risks for heart attack and stroke, as well as how to reduce these risks. Early research into this educational intervention shows the video is effective…
Alendronate May Provide Cardiovascular Benefits; Plus FDA Approves Subcutaneous Tocilizumab
New research has linked alendronate to reduced cardiovascular death in hip fracture patients…
New Study Raises Cardiovascular Questions about Febuxostat for Gout
New research raises questions about the cardiovascular safety of febuxostat for gout patients compared with allopurinol. The study found that although febuxostat was noninferior to allopurinol, febuxostat-treated patients had similar overall rates of major adverse cardiovascular events as allopurinol-treated patients, but had higher rates of all-cause mortality and cardiovascular mortality…
European Commission Approves Subcutaneous Belimumab for SLE; FDA Safety Alert for Febuxostat
Subcutaneous belimumab has been approved in the EU to help treat patients with active autoantibody-positive SLE…