Rheumatoid Arthritis

Biologics can improve the quality of life for RA patients, but side effects remain a problem, especially for RA patients with co-morbidities.

Cardiorespiratory fitness is low among patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Improving fitness improves risks for cardiovascular disease and coupled with combination therapy, may lower disease activity as well as foster increased physical activity, recent studies show.

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.

Evidence continues to emerge that biologics-in combination with DMARDS-offer a solid line of defense for patients with rheumatoid arthritis at risk of rapid disease progression .

Tocilizumab treated rheumatoid arthritis patients are at an increased risk for major adverse cardiovascular events, according to a study published in Arthritis & Rheumatology.

Treatment with rituximab can significantly reduce rheumatoid arthritis flare up, according to results of a study published in the Journal of Clinical Rheumatology.

How do patients with rheumatoid arthritis rate their health and well being? Their relationship with their physician? Two new surveys shed light.

Even if they have health insurance, some patients with rheumatoid arthritis may not be receiving adequate therapy.

The treatment window of opportunity for rheumatoid arthritis was debated in a recent editorial published in the Annals of Rheumatic Diseases.

There’s an app in development that could make it easier -- even fun-- for young children with juvenile idiopathic arthritis to describe where and how much they hurt.

Ultrasound diagnosis of tenosynovitis has now been shown to be superior to clinical signs and symptoms (eg, early morning stiffness, symmetrical arthritis, and hand joint arthritis) in predicting early rheumatoid arthritis.

The overall cost of rheumatoid arthritis treatment has dropped over the past decade in Germany. Researchers there say several factors are driving the trend.

Weight loss may have an important role in the nonpharmacologic management of obese patients with rheumatoid arthritis, a new study shows.

Work productivity can be improved in early rheumatoid arthritis patients using a combination etanercept and methotrexate therapy.

Bone erosions found at a rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patient’s baseline exam are harbingers of future joint damage and more severe disease. As to why this is so, new studies offer only hints.

Numbers in randomized drug trials were too small to amass enough adverse events to settle the issue, but combined they show an increased hypertension risk for the tumor necrosis factor inhibitors used to treat rheumatoid arthritis.

More good news for Actemra: rheumatoid arthritis patients can safely transition from the intravenous form of the IL-16 blocker to the injectable version.

The increased insulin resistance seen in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients compared to non-RA controls did not contribute to additional atherosclerosis risk, according to research published in Arthritis & Rheumatology.

Tofacitinib affects response to the pneumonia (but not the influenza) vaccine in rheumatoid arthritis patients, especially those also taking methotrexate.

Discontinuing disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drug (DMARD) therapy in patients with rheumatoid arthritis who have achieved remission is safe, according to research published in the Annals of Rheumatic Diseases.

Evaluating a 29-year-old female business executive with complaints of joint pains and stiffness affecting both hands and wrists, both feet and her left knee. She has reported these symptoms for the past 3 weeks.

Contrary to popular opinion, exercise programs may relieve joint and muscle stiffness in patients with rheumatoid arthritis.

Rheumatoid arthritis pain has been alleviated in half of patients enrolled in a study which used an electrical implanted device to emit magnetic pulses at the Academic Medical Center in Amsterdam, the Netherlands.

A clinical trial that evaluated the use of tocilizumab for the treatment of patients with rheumatoid arthritis and renal insufficiency found the medication to be safe and effective.

The optimal treatment time for slowing the progression of rheumatoid arthritis is earlier in the course of disease, researchers said in the Annals of Rheumatic Diseases.