Rheumatoid Arthritis

Latest News


CME Content


What’s next for rheumatoid arthritis-associated periodontal disease?

Identifying and treating symptoms that can appear years before the clinical onset of rheumatoid arthritis could play a role in helping patients offset the condition. And now, new research that identifies a bacteria as a potential cause of these symptoms has one rheumatologist positing whether improved oral care, or maybe a vaccine, might be effective in preventing rheumatoid arthritis.

Upadacitinib vs Adalimumab in RA

The JAK1-selective inhibitor upadacitinib successfully improved the signs, symptoms and function of rheumatoid arthritis patients in a randomized clinical trial published this month in Arthritis and Rheumatology.

Teach them to fish:  Addressing the sexual health needs of patients and practice

The impact of chronic inflammatory disease on sexual function may seem obvious but it is poorly understood. Pain, morning stiffness, joint swelling and fatigue can lead to a decreased sexual interest and can inhibit actual intercourse. In this article, Dr. Kim Gorgens reviews the current literature on sexual function for patients with chronic conditions, such as arthritis, and makes recommendations for incorporating sexual function complications as part of the discussion in a clinic exam. 

In this month's health quiz, we revisit some of our most popular articles published in recent weeks. This includes news reports on the safety and efficacy of baricitinib, upadacitinib effectiveness as monotherapy, inherited rheumatoid arthritis and our most popular story from this month:  The sexual health of patients with musculoskeletal conditions.

 Tofacitinib Demonstrates Sustained Improvement in RA

In an article published in a recent edition of Arthritis Research & Therapy, Jurgen Wollenhaupt and colleagues from multiple international centers have discovered that tofacitinib 5mg and 10mg twice a day remained effective and safe even after 8 and 9.5 years respectively.

Arthritis Manifestations Differ in RA and OA Patients

Anne-Mari Mustonen and colleagues in Finland have determined the respective fatty acid (FA) signatures found in the infrapatellar fat pad (IFP) and synovial fluid (SF) of patients with osteoarthritis (OA), and rheumatoid arthritis (RA). While the authors’ findings are inconclusive, they give insight into the complex alterations in fatty acid profiles found in knee arthropathies. They present their findings in a recent Arthritis Research & Therapy.

MRI-guided treat-to-target treatment for patients with rheumatoid arthritis.

MRI-guided treat-to-target treatment for patients with rheumatoid arthritis is no better than conventional treat-to-target strategies, researchers reported in JAMA in February. However, in a new commentary posted this month in JAMA, researchers raise some interesting points experts may want to reconsider.

 (©Photographee.eu, AdobeStock.com)

Rheumatoid arthritis patients taking tofacitinib could face some increased risks for significant cardiovascular events, depending upon their underlying characteristics, according to the results of a new study.