How are COVID-19 and physical distancing restrictions at work affecting rheumatology professionals? The Rheumatologist interviewed clinical pharmacist Wendy Ramey, BSPharm, RPh, CSP, to discuss how the pandemic has changed the way her staff supports rheumatologists at the University of Kentucky Specialty Pharmacy and Infusion Services, Lexington. Ms. Ramey describes how these unprecedented times affect patients,…
In March 2020, an elderly married couple living on Long Island, N.Y., presented to our emergency department with symptoms suspicious for COVID-19 infection. The wife, a-76-year-old woman, presented with complaints of subjective fevers, minimal dry cough and headaches of one-week duration. She denied having any chills, rhinorrhea, diarrhea, abdominal pain or shortness of breath. Two…
(Reuters)—Initial data from clinical trials testing whether patients with severe coronavirus illness can be helped by a rheumatoid arthritis drug sold by Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc and Sanofi SA may come as early as next week, Regeneron’s chief scientific officer told Reuters. “We could be one to two weeks—at most a month or so—away from knowing…
NEW YORK/HELSINKI (Reuters)—Amneal Pharmaceuticals could soon run out of the raw ingredients to make more of the anti-malarial drug hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) that has been touted as a potential treatment for COVID-19 because Finland is keeping the drug for domestic use, according to the generic drugmaker’s chief executives. Amneal has committed to producing about 20 million…
Under the onslaught of developing information on COVID-19, one health system found a way to streamline communication using a secure tool it already had access to.
How are COVID-19 and current restrictions on physical distancing affecting rheumatologists? The Rheumatologist interviewed Karim Masri, MD, to ask how the pandemic has changed the way he and his clinic staff deliver patient care, and how these unprecedented times affect patients, staff and life outside the office. Dr. Masri is a practicing rheumatologist at Bon…
On April 7, the FDA approved an Abbreviated New Drug Application (ANDA) for Hydroxychloroquine Sulfate Tablets USP, 200 mg, for the treatment of: 1) uncomplicated malaria due to P. falciparum, P. malariae, P. ovale and P. vivax; 2) chronic discoid lupus erythematosus and systemic lupus erythematosus in adults; and 3) treatment of acute and chronic…
The FDA has authorized a phase 3 clinical trial examining the safety and efficacy of tocilizumab plus standard care in patients hospitalized with COVID-19…
Afton Hassett, PsyD, offers self-care tips and resources to handle stress, avoid burnout and stay healthy while caring for others.
NEW YORK (Reuters Health)—The ongoing novel coronavirus pandemic has raised concerns about whether biologic therapy could make psoriasis patients more susceptible to SARS-CoV-2, the virus behind COVID-19. Mark Lebwohl, MD, from Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York and colleagues address this issue in a letter in the Journal of the…