In a recent study, researchers examined the osteoclastogenic role of the histamine 4 receptor (H4R), measuring the peripheral blood and synovial fluid monocytes in patients with RA. Results showed that multiple cytokines stimulated H4R expression, suggesting the blockage of H4R may be a useful drug target to decrease the joint damage associated with RA…
Disease outcomes in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) have improved dramatically since the introduction of biologic agents and improved treatment strategies. Nevertheless, the majority of patients still require prolonged, if not lifelong, therapy. Therefore, the ultimate goal would be to prevent RA. This study analyzed the effect of a one-year course of methotrexate in high-risk UA patients (studied in a previous trial) after post-randomization exclusion of patients without a high risk of developing RA…
The FDA has declined to approve baricitinib to treat rheumatoid arthritis, citing the need for more data on dosing and safety…
(Reuters)—A European Medicines Agency panel said on Friday it recommended granting marketing approval to Sanofi and Regeneron’s experimental drug to treat rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use gave a positive opinion on the drug, sarilumab (Kevzara), citing its ability to reduce the signs and symptoms of RA. Sarilumab, the active…
NEW YORK (Reuters Health)—Patients with early rheumatoid arthritis (RA) treated with IV tocilizumab alone or with methotrexate maintained clinical benefits during their second year of treatment, researchers say. Sophie Dimonaco of Roche Products Ltd. in Welwyn Garden City, UK and colleagues sought to determine whether the efficacy and safety of IV tocilizumab, as demonstrated in…
NEW YORK (Reuters Health)—In patients taking methotrexate for rheumatoid arthritis (RA), moderate alcohol consumption – that is, no higher than existing U.K. guidelines for the general population – was not associated with an increased risk of transaminitis, researchers say. The study is both the largest to examine alcohol and methotrexate (MTX) and the first to…
NEW YORK (Reuters Health)—Obesity and higher fat mass are associated with increased levels of inflammatory markers in women with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), researchers report. “Physicians should recognize that C-reactive protein (CRP) and erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) are affected by obesity in patients with and without rheumatoid arthritis, especially in women,” Dr. Michael D. George from the University of…
In a clinical trial, RA patients on sirukumab experienced decreased disease activity and improved physical function…
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….
In a recent study, baricitinib proved more effective than adalimumab in treating adults with RA through 52 weeks…