Spondyloarthritis

Researchers found that adding kunzea oil to topical psoriasis treatments with liquor carbonis detergens (LCD) and salicylic acid did not improve the irritating skin condition.

A small Italian study found no evidence that use of anti-TNF-alpha agents during pregnancy affects the health or development of children in their first 2 years of life.

Patients with plaque psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis have seen their treatment options increase in recent years. Thanks to more research on the topic they could see even more options in the years to come.

Researchers found that not only are patients with psoriasis or psoriatic arthritis at higher risk for uveitis, the association is bidirectional: patients with uveitis are at increased risk for psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis

A recent study published in the British Journal of Dermatology reported a spike in the risk of depression among women afflicted with psoriasis.

Study shows that adalimumab led to sustained clinical and functional responses in nearly one-third of treatment-refractory patients who completed 10 years of treatment. Patients with shorter disease duration achieved better outcomes, highlighting the need for early treatment.

A recent review looked at the immunopathogenesis of psoriasis, identified key mediators of psoriatic plaques that are being targeted by new and emerging biologic therapies, and highlighted the latest efficacy and safety data from trials of these new agents.

Analysis of a population-based cohort indicates that patients with psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis face an elevated risk of developing heart arrhythmias such as atrial fibrillation.

A review and meta-analysis of a dozen studies indicates that more than 10% of all psoriasis patients have undiagnosed cases of psoriatic arthritis.

Treatment with anti-TNF drugs and DMARDs is associated with clinically significant improvement measures of work disability such as presenteeism and productivity loss in patients with psoriatic arthritis.

Inflammatory chronic diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis, and psoriasis bring many treatment challenges. Among them is the fact that biologic therapies for these diseases-particularly anti-TNF agents-while effective, can themselves bring reactivation of a latent tuberculosis infection.

Patients with psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis (PsA) commonly experience joint pain. They are also at higher risk for cardiovascular disease (CVD).

Researchers announced a phase 3 trial assessing secukinumab for the treatment of psoriatic arthritis met its primary endpoint (ACR 20 at week 24), possibly putting the drug on the fast track to approval.

Improvements were seen in some patients participating in a phase 3 clinical trial as quickly as 4 weeks after the first treatment.

Coming next from Medicare: the ICD-10 Obmudsman. Billing under the dreaded new International Classification of Diseases-10 (ICD-10) coding system will get a bit less onerous under a deal brokered between Medicare and the American Medical Association.

Study results presented at the 2015 Congress of the European League Against Rheumatism show treatment with apremilast can improve common, painful manifestations of psoriatic arthritis.

Patients with psoriatic arthritis achieve significant improvements in signs and symptoms with the interleukin-12/23 inhibitor ustekinumab (Stelara), and they maintain those gains for 2 years, according to final results from 3 major clinical trials.

A rheumatologist picks 5 studies he found particularly noteworthy at EULAR and gets right to the point about their potential clinical implications.

The first study to assess the effects of DMARDs or anti-TNF treatment in a real world population of patients with inflammatory arthritis shows a clinically significant improvement in work disability, productivity loss, and disease activity-- especially in those receiving TNF-α blockers.

Global drug sales will reach nearly $1 trillion by 2020, a new report predicts. In 2014 the top sellers were the rheumatoid arthritis drug Humira and the hepatitis C anti-viral Sovaldi.

Many patients with ankylosing spondylitis have aortic regurgitation: this study makes the case for routine echocardiography evaluation.

More than 70,000 patients participated in a clinical trial designed to determine the hazard risk of developing psoriatic arthritis (PsA) following physical trauma in patients with psoriasis.

The novel drug ixekizumab has been found to clear psoriasis symptoms, according to results from a clinical trial led by researchers from the University of Manchester.

Is the prevalence of undiagnosed PsA high enough to recommend dermatologists and other clinicians who treat patients with psoriasis to also screen those patients for psoriatic arthritis?

Researchers have identified a set of rules that determine which molecules can trigger immune system vulnerability to common autoimmune disorders like lupus and psoriasis.

Only 1% to 3% of patients with non-radiographic axial spondyloarthritis achieve remission or low disease activity without TNF-α blockers, but these agents are not yet approved for this use in the US.

Plasma-rich platelet injection, an arthritis therapy, is thought to induce regeneration of damaged cartilage. A Netherlands team looked at existing studies and was not convinced that there is credible proof the therapy works. The studies all had a high-to-moderate risk of bias, they found.

A recent study examined the cost of biologic and non-biologic DMARDs under Medicare Part D and stand-alone coverage plans.

Early diagnosis and treatment is the key to preventing long-term joint damage in patients with psoriatic arthritis.

Allergy sufferers may refrain from voicing sniffle complaints once they hear the benefits associated with the warmer weather.