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Ann Rheum Dis 2022 May 17. Epub 2022 May 17.

BioPharmaceuticals R&D, AstraZeneca US, Gaithersburg, Maryland, USA

Objectives: In the anifrolumab systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) trial programme, there was one trial (TULIP-1) in which BILAG-based Composite Lupus Assessment (BICLA) responses favoured anifrolumab over placebo, but the SLE Responder Index (SRI(4)) treatment difference was not significant. We investigated the degree of concordance between BICLA and SRI(4) across anifrolumab trials in order to better understand drivers of discrepant SLE trial results.

Methods: TULIP-1, TULIP-2 (both phase 3) and MUSE (phase 2b) were randomised, 52-week trials of intravenous anifrolumab (300 mg every 4 weeks, 48 weeks; TULIP-1/TULIP-2: n=180; MUSE: n=99) or placebo (TULIP-1: n=184, TULIP-2: n=182; MUSE: n=102). Read More

CMAJ Open 2022 Apr-Jun;10(2):E420-E429. Epub 2022 May 17.

Department of Ophthalmology and Vision Sciences (Jin, Buys) and Dalla Lana School of Public Health (Jin), University of Toronto; Schroeder Arthritis Institute (Canizares), Krembil Research Institute, Toronto Western Hospital, University Health Network, Toronto, Ont.

Background: The proportion of women entering medicine has increased in recent years, and understanding the different practice patterns of female and male family physicians (FPs) will provide important information for health workforce planning. We sought to evaluate differences by sex in the supply, payments and clinical activity among FPs in Ontario.

Methods: We conducted a cohort study using claims data from the Ontario Health Insurance Plan. Read More

Blood Adv 2022 May 17. Epub 2022 May 17.

Alfred Health, Australia.

Haemophilic arthropathy is characterised by joint damage following recurrent joint bleeds frequently observed in patients affected by the clotting disorder haemophilia. Joint bleeds or haemarthroses trigger inflammation in the synovial tissue which promotes damage to the articular cartilage. The plasminogen activation system is integral to fibrinolysis, and urokinase plasminogen activator or uPA in particular is strongly upregulated following haemarthroses. Read More

Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2022 May 17;119(21):e2115821119. Epub 2022 May 17.

Department of Physiology & Cellular Biophysics, Columbia University, New York, NY 10032.

SignificanceModulation of peripheral nervous system (PNS) activity has shown promise in treating a wide range of diseases, from epilepsy to rheumatoid arthritis. Clinically, stimulation of nerves is most commonly delivered through invasive and risk-laden surgical electrode placement. Noninvasive technologies for PNS modulation can both increase safety and expand modulation application to various disease stages. Read More

Rheumatol Ther 2022 May 17. Epub 2022 May 17.

Department of Rheumatology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, China.

Introduction: Psoriatic arthritis (PsA) is a common inflammatory disease affecting the peripheral and axial skeleton. History of psoriasis (PSO), either personal or family history, is an important factor in the diagnosis of PsA. We investigated the association between history of PSO and clinical characteristics of PsA. Read More

Clin Rheumatol 2022 May 17. Epub 2022 May 17.

Department of Rheumatology and Clinical Immunology, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, China.

Objective: To investigate the implementation of treat-to-target (T2T) and treatment satisfaction from Chinese rheumatologists' perspectives.

Methods: This retrospective analysis of a cross-sectional database collected from rheumatologists and their adult patients with RA in China using Adelphi Real World Disease Specific Programme™ methodology. Multivariate logistic regression models were used to evaluate factors associated with T2T use, achievement of T2T goals, and physician treatment satisfaction. Read More

J Exp Med 2022 Jun 17;219(6). Epub 2022 May 17.

Division of Molecular Psychoimmunology, Institute for Genetic Medicine, Graduate School of Medicine, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan.

Neural circuits between lesions are one mechanism through which local inflammation spreads to remote positions. Here, we show the inflammatory signal on one side of the joint is spread to the other side via sensory neuron-interneuron crosstalk, with ATP at the core. Surgical ablation or pharmacological inhibition of this neural pathway prevented inflammation development on the other side. Read More

JAMA 2022 May;327(19):1910-1919

Department of Medical Social Sciences, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, Illinois.

Importance: Patient-reported outcomes (PROs) can inform health care decisions, regulatory decisions, and health care policy. They also can be used for audit/benchmarking and monitoring symptoms to provide timely care tailored to individual needs. However, several ethical issues have been raised in relation to PRO use. Read More

Clin Exp Pharmacol Physiol 2022 May 17. Epub 2022 May 17.

Histology-Embriology Department, Faculty of Medicine, Erciyes University, Kayseri, Turkey.

Chronic hypoxia negatively affects male fertility by causing pathological changes in male reproductive system. However, underlying mechanisms of this damage are unknown. Chloroquine (CLQ) is an anti-inflammatory agent which is widely used in the treatment of inflammation-related diseases such as malaria and rheumatoid arthritis. Read More

Rheumatology (Oxford) 2022 May 17. Epub 2022 May 17.

Department of Rheumatology, University Hospital Basel and University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland.

Objectives: JAK Inhibitors (JAKi) are recommended DMARDs for patients with moderate-to severe rheumatoid arthritis (RA) who failed first-line therapy with methotrexate. There is a lack of data allowing an evidence-based choice of subsequent disease modifying anti-rheumatic drug (DMARD) therapy for patients who had discontinued JAKi treatment. We aimed to compare the effectiveness of TNF inhibitor (TNFi) therapy vs JAKi vs other mode of action (OMA) biologic DMARD (bDMARD) in RA patients who were previously treated with a JAKi. Read More

Clin Exp Rheumatol 2022 Apr 29. Epub 2022 Apr 29.

Department of Rheumatology and Inflammation Research, Institute of Medicine, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, and Rheumatology Clinic, Sahlgrenska University Hospital, Gothenburg, Sweden.

Objectives: MicroRNAs (miRs) are non-translated RNA sequences that elicit negative control over protein expression. The adipose tissue (AT) is considered the major producer of miRs and inflammatory interleukin 6 (IL-6). This study aims to investigate the relationship between production of IL-6 and miRs in AT. Read More

Clin Exp Rheumatol 2022 Apr 29. Epub 2022 Apr 29.

Dipartimento di Scienze Cliniche Internistiche, Anestesiologiche e Cardiovascolari, Sapienza University of Rome, Italy.

Objectives: Since the onset of the COVID-19 outbreak, concern has been raised about reliability of SARS-CoV-2 serological tests in people with serum positivity for rheumatoid factor (RF), due to its ability to interfere during tests carried out with immunoassay techniques, leading to false positive results. The aim of this study was to analyse, on sera from RF seropositive rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients, the interference between RF IgM and anti-S1 RBD IgM.

Methods: The study was conducted on consecutive patients affected by RF seropositive RA and, as control group, COVID-19 patients with SARS-CoV-2 pneumonia hospitalised at Sapienza University of Rome from April 2020 and April 2021. Read More

Reumatol Clin 2022 May 12. Epub 2022 May 12.

Department of Clinical Immunology and Rheumatology, Institute of Post Graduate Medical Education and Research, Kolkata, India.

Background: Rheumatological manifestations following COVID-19 are various, including Reactive Arthritis (ReA), which is a form of asymmetric oligoarthritis mainly involving the lower limbs, with or without extra-articular features. The current case series describes the clinical profile and treatment outcome of 23 patients with post-COVID-19 ReA.

Methods: A retrospective, observational study of patients with post-COVID-19 arthritis over one year was conducted at a tertiary care centre in India. Read More

J Dtsch Dermatol Ges 2022 May;20(5):653-683

Department and Clinic for Dermatology and Allergology, University Hospital Bonn, Germany.

There have been multiple systemic drugs approved for the therapy of psoriasis vulgaris and psoriasis arthritis (PsA) in the last decade. However, treatment decisions are difficult to make in women planning a pregnancy and in pregnant and lactating women due to the paucity of data for such cases. The strongest evidence for psoriasis therapy during pregnancy exists for topical corticosteroids. Read More

J Foot Ankle Res 2022 May 16;15(1):36. Epub 2022 May 16.

School of Clinical Sciences, Faculty of Health and Environmental Sciences, Auckland University of Technology, 90 Akoranga Drive, Northcote, Auckland, New Zealand.

Background: Foot problems, including foot pain, structural deformities, skin and nail lesions, and footwear difficulties, are common in people with inflammatory rheumatic diseases. However, dedicated podiatry services are limited, including in Aotearoa New Zealand. This study aimed to evaluate the podiatry service use for people with inflammatory rheumatic diseases who attended a specialist podiatric rheumatology clinic in Aotearoa New Zealand. Read More

Arthritis Res Ther 2022 May 16;24(1):112. Epub 2022 May 16.

Cedars-Sinai Medical Center and University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA.

Background: Patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) have substantial unmet medical need. Baricitinib is a Janus kinase (JAK)1 and 2 inhibitor that was shown to have therapeutic benefit in patients with SLE in a phase II clinical trial. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the median change from baseline in conventional serologic biomarkers in subgroups and the overall population of baricitinib-treated patients with SLE, and the SLE Responder Index-4 (SRI-4) response by normalization of anti-dsDNA. Read More

Arthritis Res Ther 2022 May 16;24(1):111. Epub 2022 May 16.

CIRI/Rheumatology and Fraunhofer TMP, Goethe-University, Frankfurt, Germany.

Objective: To investigate the imaging characteristics and clinically assess heel enthesitis in spondyloarthritis (SpA) by applying in a post hoc analysis the Heel Enthesitis Magnetic Resonance Imaging Scoring system (HEMRIS) in blinded and centrally-read MRI data from the ACHILLES trial (NCT02771210).

Methods: ACHILLES included patients (≥18 years) with active psoriatic arthritis or axial SpA with clinical and MRI-positive heel enthesitis refractory to standard treatment. Patients were randomized to receive subcutaneous secukinumab 150/300 mg or placebo. Read More

Clin Oral Investig 2022 May 17. Epub 2022 May 17.

Department of Applied Oral Sciences, Center for Periodontology, The Forsyth Institute, Cambridge, MA, USA.

Objectives: We evaluated the effect of B cell depletion on the clinical periodontal findings and IL-1β and MMP-8 levels of the gingival crevicular (GCF) fluid in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA).

Materials And Methods: Seventy patients were included in this case-control study. Twenty patients with RA were undergoing B-cell depletion treatment. Read More

Nat Commun 2022 May 16;13(1):2690. Epub 2022 May 16.

Departments of Pediatrics, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA.

The Notch pathway is a conserved cell-cell communication pathway that controls cell fate decisions. Here we sought to determine how Notch pathway activation inhibits the neuroendocrine cell fate in the lungs, an archetypal process for cell fate decisions orchestrated by Notch signaling that has remained poorly understood at the molecular level. Using intratumoral heterogeneity in small-cell lung cancer as a tractable model system, we uncovered a role for the transcriptional regulators REST and YAP as promoters of the neuroendocrine to non-neuroendocrine transition. Read More

Asian J Surg 2022 May 13. Epub 2022 May 13.

Department of Pediatrics, Affiliated Hospital of Inner Mongolia Medical University, No. 1, Tongdao North Street, Huimin District, Hohhot, Inner Mongolia, 010050, China.

Health Policy 2022 May 10. Epub 2022 May 10.

SINTEF Health Services Research, Klæbuveien 153, Trondheim 7037, Norway.

The Covid-19 pandemic has revealed the importance of social protection systems, including income security, when health problems arise. The aims of this study are to compare the follow-up regimes for sick-listed employees across nine European countries, and to conduct a qualitative assessment of the differences with respect to burden and responsibility sharing between the social protection system, employers and employees. The tendency highlighted is that countries with shorter employer periods of sick-pay typically have stricter follow-up responsibility for employers because, in practice, they become gatekeepers of the public sickness benefit scheme. Read More

Br J Sports Med 2022 May 16. Epub 2022 May 16.

Royal Osteoporosis Society, Bath, UK.

Exercise and physical activity can improve bone strength and the risk of falls, which may offer benefits in the prevention and management of osteoporosis. However, uncertainty about the types of exercise that are safe and effective instigates lack of confidence in people with osteoporosis and health professionals. Existing guidelines leave some questions unresolved. Read More

RMD Open 2022 May;8(1)

Division of Clinical Immunology and Rheumatology, The University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama, USA

Objective: Tofacitinib is an oral Janus kinase for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). This post hoc analysis assessed whether baseline body mass index (BMI) impacts tofacitinib efficacy in patients with RA.

Methods: Pooled data from six phase 3 studies in patients receiving tofacitinib 5 mg (N=1589) or 10 mg (N=1611) twice daily or placebo (advancing to active treatment at months 3 or 6; N=680), ±conventional synthetic disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs, were stratified by baseline BMI (<25, 25 to <30, ≥30 kg/m). Read More

Ann Rheum Dis 2022 Jun;81(6):906

Ann Rheum Dis 2022 Jun;81(6):751-752

Division of Rheumatology and Research, Diakonhjemmet Hospital, Oslo, Norway

Ann Rheum Dis 2022 Jun;81(6):748-750

Rheumatology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria

Joint Bone Spine 2022 May 13:105409. Epub 2022 May 13.

Service de Rhumatologie, CHRU, Boulevard Fleming, 25030 Besançon, France; EA 4267 PEPITE, Université Bourgogne Franche-Comté, Besançon, France.

Joint Bone Spine 2022 May 13:105410. Epub 2022 May 13.

Service de Biochimie et Biologie moléculaire, Centre Hospitalier Lyon Sud, Hospices Civils de Lyon, Lyon, France; Laboratoire CarMeN, INSERM U1060, INRAE U1397, Université de Lyon, Université Claude Bernard Lyon1, 69600, Oullins, France.

EBioMedicine 2022 May 13;80:104053. Epub 2022 May 13.

Rheumatology Research Group, Vall d'Hebron University Hospital Research Institute, Barcelona 08035, Spain. Electronic address:

Background: Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic, immune-mediated inflammatory disease of the joints that has been associated with variation in the peripheral blood methylome. In this study, we aim to identify epigenetic variation that is associated with the response to tumor necrosis factor inhibitor (TNFi) therapy.

Methods: Peripheral blood genome-wide DNA methylation profiles were analyzed in a discovery cohort of 62 RA patients at baseline and at week 12 of TNFi therapy. Read More

Clin Exp Immunol 2022 May 16. Epub 2022 May 16.

Department of Immunology and Biotechnology, Medical School, University of Pecs, Hungary.

The spleen is the largest secondary lymphoid organ which is involved in the development of B cells and also in systemic (auto)immune responses. Here, we investigated the significance of the spleen in the autoimmune arthritis induction and pathogenesis using the recombinant human G1 domain-induced arthritis (GIA) model in splenectomized and control BALB/c mice. Splenectomized mice developed GIA with similar clinical picture to the control group. Read More