Through the use of large-scale transcriptome analysis, researchers have gained insight into the role of innate immunity in juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) pathology. Specifically, transcriptomes of neutrophils in chronic inflammatory states demonstrate extensive network rewiring caused by microRNA, suggesting a role for alternative splicing in JIA pathogenesis…
NEW YORK (Reuters)—U.S. antitrust officials on Thursday moved to block an unprecedented consolidation of the national health insurance market, filing suit against Anthem Inc.’s proposed purchase of Cigna Corp. and Aetna Inc.’s planned acquisition of Humana Inc. The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) says the two mergers would reduce competition, raise prices for consumers and…
New research examines how nanomedicines may be able to reprogram disease-causing white blood cells, a process that may reset the immune system to a healthy state and enable targeted treatments for many autoimmune diseases…
NEW YORK (Reuters Health)—Inappropriate underprescribing of medications is associated with increased mortality and hospitalization rates among community-dwelling adults aged 80 years and older, researchers from Belgium report. “Patients with five or more medications (a standard cut-off used for polypharmacy) can have a well-tailored and balanced medication therapy with an acceptable risk for adverse events,” Dr….
(Reuters)—UnitedHealth Group Inc. on Tuesday said it anticipated another $200 million more in losses this year on the individual insurance business created under U.S. President Barack Obama’s national healthcare reform law, citing the program’s high medical costs. The largest U.S. health insurer says the problem was confined to this one business line, which it plans…
(Reuters)—Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc.’s experimental drug to treat psoriasis should be approved as long as certain measures are put in place to mitigate the risk of suicide, an advisory committee to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration concluded on Tuesday. The FDA is not obliged to follow the advice of its advisory committees but typically…
NEW YORK (Reuters)—U.S. antitrust officials are poised to file lawsuits to block Anthem Inc’s acquisition of Cigna Corp., as well as Aetna Inc.’s takeover of Humana Inc., a person familiar with the matter tells Reuters. Antitrust regulators have been scrutinizing the deals and looking at the potential for higher prices if the insurance market consolidates…
n clinical trials, tildrakizumab was more effective than etanercept and placebo at treating moderate to severe plaque psoriasis. Adalimumab has received approval for treating non-infectious intermediate, posterior and panuveitis—its 10th FDA indication…
(Reuters Health)—Women with osteoporosis who take bisphosphonates to help avoid fractures still need to have their bone density monitored, a Canadian study suggests. Researchers who studied more than 6,600 women taking osteoporosis drugs found that for nearly one in five, bone mineral density at the hip actually decreased after the women started taking the medication….
A majority of state legislatures have concluded their work for 2016. The ACR’s state advocacy efforts continued to focus on policy benefiting rheumatologists and patients alike. The two dominant issues this year were biosimilar substitution and step therapy. Biosimilar Substitution Biosimilar substitution remains the most prevalent issue throughout the states. The ACR continues to monitor…