Rheumatoid Arthritis

As a follow-up to the initial establishment of Simponi (golimumab)'s safety and efficacy in rheumatoid arthritis (RA), researchers presented final 5-year data evaluating the tumor necrosis factor (TNF) blocker's effects in RA patients taking methotrexate and those naïve to the biologic agent.

Though previous reports have described a link between vitamin D deficiency and an increased risk of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) development, a trio of studies has now offered clinical support to the contrary belief.

Although methotrexate with or without glucocorticoids (GCs) is commonly used as a first-line treatment in rheumatoid arthritis (RA), study results show that combining the medication with two other traditional disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs) produces better outcomes in newly-diagnosed RA patients.

While the use of acute, high-dose systemic corticosteroids probably has no clinically significant effect on wound healing, chronic systemic corticosteroids may impair postoperative healing in susceptible patients.

The patient presented with fever, dyspnea, and productive cough. He also had worsening lower-extremity arthralgia. Can you guess the diagnosis?

While substantial evidence already shows several genetic and environmental elements factor into immune-mediated rheumatic disease susceptibility, a recent review of hospital admissions data suggests vitamin D deficiency can single-handedly elevate a patient's risk of developing certain chronic conditions within that group of disorders.

Though physicians are already aware that rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and ankylosing spondylitis (AS) cause inflammation in joints, tendons, and surrounding muscle tissues, the effects of those chronic autoimmune disorders on stiffness, strength, and function of the patellar tendon have not yet been determined.

Though recent reviews were unable to provide evidence of efficacy for several complementary treatments for rheumatoid arthritis (RA), a group of researchers decided to clinically evaluate the effectiveness of static electric field therapy by high voltage alternating current (EF-HVAC) in the chronic inflammatory autoimmune disorder.

From full-motion video demonstrations of orthopedic clinical tests to suites of disease activity score calculators, these apps for Google and Apple mobile devices provide rheumatologists with useful and easy-to-access information at crucial moments in diagnosis and treatment.

Sports medicine clinicians from the Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS), in New York City, report that platelet-rich plasma (PRP) injections improve joint pain and function in patients with osteoarthritis, a leading cause of disability that affects more than 47 million people in the United States.

As part of a national multispecialty campaign to reduce unnecessary medical procedures, an American College of Rheumatology task force (with membership input) offers a Top Five list of practices to think twice about, and discuss with patients before prescribing.

Treatment with the TNF-α inhibitor adalimumab (Humira) for four years appears to arrest spinal bone loss in some rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients, according to a new study from the Netherlands.

Despite hopes that rilonacept might provide a better alternative to NSAIDs or colchicines for gout pain, it does not provide significant relief either on its own or as an add-on therapy to indomethacin.

Anti-CCP titers, whether high or low, predict the development of rheumatoid arthritis, and speed of onset, among patients with undifferentiated arthritis.

Evidence-based analysis shows that weak opioids have at best a weak effect in rheumatoid arthritis pain. Steroid injections offer no long-term relief for tennis elbow.

Does the research show any significant difference between anti-tumor necrosis factor drugs in terms of their effectiveness for treating psoriatic arthritis?

News on new therapies for osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis, prescription drug monitoring programs, post-operative opioid use, the cost of chronic pain, and other developments in the field of pain management.

Overweight women face a higher risk of rheumatoid arthritis than their normal-weight peers, according to a study presented at the annual scientific meeting of the American College of Rheumatology in Washington, DC.

Results presented at the American College of Rheumatology/Association of Rheumatology Professionals 2012 annual meeting show that adalimumab and methotrexate are more effective than DMARDs and prednisone in achieving remission in patients with early rheumatoid arthritis or undifferentiated arthritis patients.

The risks are proven. The benefits are questionable. The alternatives are numerous. So is it ever a good idea to prescribe opioids for patients suffering with chronic pain from rheumatoid arthritis?

More effective management of rheumatoid arthritis with medication may be contributing to a decline in the need for joint surgery in patients with the condition, Mayo Clinic researchers have found.

According to a study by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), more than 32 million people in the United States have proteins created by the immune system that target the body's tissues. Known as autoantibodies, these proteins are typically markers for autoimmunity, which can result in conditions such as type 1 diabetes and rheumatoid arthritis.

Glucocorticoid therapy appears to help reduce the amount of citrullination in the joints of rheumatoid arthritis patients, researchers have found.

More than two in five adults with rheumatoid arthritis are physically inactive, to the detriment of their health, researchers at the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine report in a study published online today in Arthritis Care & Research.

Doctors may be halting use of anti-tumor necrosis factor (anti-TNF) medications too early in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients who are set to undergo surgery, researchers at the Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS) in New York City have found.

Rheumatoid arthritis patients have an increased risk of venous thromboembolism, Mayo Clinic researchers have found.

Treatment of early rheumatoid arthritis patients with tumor necrosis factor antagonists produces no reduction in the risk of acute coronary syndrome, researchers in Sweden have found.

The US Food and Drug Administration has accepted for review a New Drug Application for tofacitinib from Pfizer Inc.

Amidst smartphone applications that transform your thumbs into drumsticks and others that make "whoosh" noises as you swing around your phone/digital lightsaber, there are apps that can actually be quite useful in the medical field.

Death rates are somewhat higher for patients with rheumatoid arthritis, especially from respiratory diseases, though incidence rates of malignancies are not significantly different from the general population, researchers at Hanyang University in Seoul, South Korea, have discovered.