A systematic review of alopecia areata (AA) in Clinical, Cosmetic & Investigational Dermatology highlighted the unpredictability and lack of treatment options for the condition. But it also pointed to a larger problem: more than half of patients with AA experience poor health-related quality of life (QOL). Patients with AA are at risk for depression and anxiety, atopy, vitiligo, thyroid disease, and other autoimmune conditions.
Patients with fibromyalgia typically experience widespread chronic pain and a new study adds to the evidence that emotional impact is prominent as well.
A recent study in The Journal of Headache and Pain sheds some additional light on the chronobiological experience of patients with cluster headache (CH). However, it still leaves lingering mysteries around the pattern of pain CH that patients typically experience, the triggers of those headaches, and the mechanisms and interactions that drive headache frequency and severity.
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.
B-cells that are active in lupus may also play a role in Sjögren’s syndrome. A new study finds that the same B-cell depleter drug, belimumab (Benlysta) approved for lupus, may also benefit Sjögren’s patients.
Social stressors, such as being treated poorly in a doctor’s office, can lead to negative disease outcomes, particularly among black women with lupus, a new study shows.
In one of the first large-scale studies designed to assess the risk of vascular mortality in patients with ankylosing spondylitis, researchers have found that patients with ankylosing spondylitis have a significantly higher risk for vascular death as compared to healthy populations.
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.
Complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS) is one of the pain conditions that has remained fairly mysterious, but a new, effective treatment may be on the horizon. It is known that CRPS most often develops following trauma, however, and evidence suggests a maladaptive response to nervous system damage involving immune and inflammatory pathways as well as abnormalities in both peripheral and central processing of afferent inputs. No single therapy – including pharmacologic therapy – wholly addresses the condition.
Patients with tophaceous gout rarely develop ulcers, but when they do occur, these ulcers can be difficult to treat. This case study explores the diagnosis of and treatment options for patients with ulcerated tophaceous gout.
Up to one-third of people with active ankylosing spondylitis (AS) have some degree of bone loss due to systemic inflammation and decreased mobility, but lowering inflammation with tumor necrosis factor blockers may improve bone density.
Although a seemingly invisible condition, fibromyalgia (FM) may have an important connection with mental health symptoms.
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.
A new review points to important questions about the efficacy and safety of paracetamol (acetaminophen) to treat spinal pain and osteoarthrisis.
Two commonly prescribed gout therapies have also been shown to successfully treat another life-altering condition, researchers reported.
Psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis have long been associated with cardiovascular disease and deaths, but now a large population study from Taiwan indicates the danger of cardiac arrhythmias is increased independently of traditional risk factors such as coronary disease and high blood pressure.
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.
Patients with chronic back and leg pain may be able to forgo the use of prescription painkillers thanks to a new treatment that has been shown to provide long-lasting analgesia.
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.
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 .
Does timing really make an impact when it comes to treating back pain? A new study weighed in on the importance early initiation of therapy in this patient population.
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.
Guselkumab, a selective antagonist of IL-23, went head to head with adalimumab in a year-long phase 2 trial of 293 patients with moderate to severe plaque psoriasis. A quick synopsis of the results here.
Hard, mobile, painless subcutaneous nodules developed in this woman who had had dermatomyositis for 20 years. The calcifications progressed during treatment with infliximab.
Here is the case of a 30-year-old man with scalp psoriasis in whom Koebner phenomenon developed at areas of developing shingles.
It may not be a surprise that having more gout flares in a year is more costly, but a recent study has quantified just how much more expensive they are.
A widely accessible medication commonly used to treat psychiatric disorders may also inhibit the damaging effects of osteoarthritis.
Tocilizumab treated rheumatoid arthritis patients are at an increased risk for major adverse cardiovascular events, according to a study published in Arthritis & Rheumatology.
Allopurinol's overall impact on the risk of mortality has been studied but is not yet well-understood. Now, a study has shown that the benefits from this treatment likely outweigh the risk of serious side effects.
