Dr. Lisa Stamp helps filter the noise to get to the key insights from the research abstracts on gout presented at ACR Convergence 2024.
Almost Half of Patients with RA Experience Flare after Glucocorticoid Discontinuation
In a post hoc analysis of two clinical trials, Maassen et al. demonstrated that 40% of patients with early RA or undifferentiated arthritis experienced disease flare after primary glucocorticoid discontinuation despite background treatment with conventional synthetic DMARDs.
Patterns of Arthritis Flare
Similar patterns of inflammation occur in the joints of patients with inflammatory arthritis, but in each individual, arthritis affects only a subset of possible anatomic areas. Chang et al. set out to identify patient-specific anatomic patterns of joint flare to distinguish local from systemic drivers of chronic disease.
Baricitinib Promising for Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis
In a study from Ramanan et al., baricitinib proved safe and effective for reducing the time to flare and frequency of flare in patients aged 2–18 years with juvenile idiopathic arthritis.
COVID-19 Vaccination in Patients with Rheumatic Disease
In January A&R, Simon et al. report a study to assess humoral and cellular immune responses after infection with, or vaccination against, SARS-CoV-2 in patients with B cell depletion and controls who are B cell competent, finding that B cell depletion completely blocks humoral but not T cell SARS-CoV-2 vaccination response. In the same issue, Connolly et al. evaluated disease flare and post-vaccination reactions in patients with rheumatic and musculoskeletal diseases following messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccination.
Tofacitinib Yields Rapid & Sustained Improvement in JIA
NEW YORK (Reuters Health)—Tofacitinib significantly reduces the number of flares in children with polyarticular course juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA), according to the first phase-3 clinical trial to assess the efficacy of a Janus kinase (JAK) inhibitor in JIA. JIA is a heterogeneous group of chronic conditions with no known cause that develop before age 16…
Lupus Flares Pose Greatest Risk for Adverse Pregnancy Outcomes in Women with SLE
According to new research, women with SLE are at the highest risk for adverse pregnancy outcomes during a lupus flare. The data may enable clinicians to use risk stratification and tailored monitoring to counsel SLE patients who are pregnant or considering pregnancy. Researchers also found that maternal age, lupus nephritis and antiphospholipid antibodies may affect pregnancy outcomes…
Predictors of RA Flare After Total Joint Arthroplasty
At the time of total joint arthroplasty, RA disease activity has been shown to better predict postoperative flare than medication management…
Canakinumab Reduces Risk for Gout Flares, But Not Serum Uric Acid Levels
An exploratory analysis of a canakinumab clinical trial has shown the interleukin 1β inhibitor may significantly reduce patients’ risk for gout flares. During the study, patients using canakinumab experienced this decreased risk, but the treatment did not change serum uric acid levels…
Flare Risk Increases When Medication Is Stopped Prior to Arthroplasty
After total hip or knee arthroplasty, flares are common in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), according to a recently published study.1 Higher disease activity at baseline appears to be linked to flares, but use of such medications as biologics and methotrexate did not independently predict flaring. “Contrary to the notion that patients with established RA…