COVID-19 has generated an outpouring of fast-paced, late-breaking new developments. The majority of countries (188) around the world have reported cases of COVID-19.1 As of April 1, 2020, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention had reported cases in every U.S. jurisdiction (50 states, District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands and…
NEW YORK (Reuters Health)—In postmenopausal women and men treated for at least two years with denosumab, a single infusion of zoledronate given after denosumab discontinuation does not completely prevent bone turnover and loss, researchers say. Given the findings, “bone mineral density (BMD) should probably be higher than the current target for discontinuation of bisphosphonate treatment…
(Reuters)—Roche’s rheumatoid arthritis drug Actemra (tocilizumab) failed to help patients with early-stage COVID-19 pneumonia in an Italian study, the latest instance in which an anti-inflammatory drug has fallen through in a coronavirus trial. Despite the setback, the Swiss drugmaker said that it is pressing ahead with testing tocilizumab in another trial against COVID-19, the disease…
NEW YORK (Reuters Health)—COVID-19-infected patients with rheumatic disease were more likely to experience respiratory failure than those without rheumatic disease, according to a retrospective study in China. “Immune dysregulation underlying rheumatic diseases may affect the disease manifestation of COVID-19,” Dr. Jixin Zhong of Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, tells Reuters Health by email….
NEW YORK (Reuters Health)—Patients with some inflammatory rheumatic conditions are at higher risk for hospital-diagnosed COVID-19 infection compared with the general population, but it depends on the condition and therapy used to treat it, according to a study from Spain. It’s now clear that older patients and those with some common diseases are at increased…
An analysis of data from the COVID-19 Global Rheumatology Alliance registry shows that use of disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs or non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs did not increase the risk of hospitalization for COVID-19 patients with rheumatic disease, but steroid use did.
Japanese pediatrician Tomisaku Kawasaki, MD, who identified an inflammatory syndrome that affects children, died on June 5 in Tokyo. He was 95. Tenacity & Attention to Detail Born Feb. 7, 1925, in Tokyo, Dr. Kawasaki graduated from medical school at what is now Chiba University in Chiba, Japan, in 1948 and worked as staff pediatrician…
NEW YORK (Reuters Health)—Two new reports in JAMA strengthen the link between SARS-CoV-2 infection and pediatric inflammatory multisystem syndrome (PIMS). Pediatricians from several communities have reported children who developed fever and multisystem inflammation during the COVID-19 pandemic. Some children were critically ill and some had characteristics similar to Kawasaki disease or Kawasaki disease shock syndrome….
(Reuters Health)—Patients hospitalized for a hip fracture are less likely to experience a subsequent fracture-related hospitalization if they start anti-osteoporosis medication sooner, a Taiwanese study suggests.1 Researchers examined data on 77,930 patients aged 50 years and older hospitalized for hip fractures, including 9,986 people prescribed anti-osteoporosis medications within one year of the index fracture. Compared…
In light of the current COVID-19 pandemic, the ACR has dedicated a few episodes of the ACR on Air podcast to the challenges that have arisen, along with information about the available resources and guidance. The first episode in this special series looks at drug shortages surrounding hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) and its initial uses to treat…