Rheumatology

Urinary sodium-to-potassium ratio is independently and positively associated with disease activity and hypertension in people with rheumatoid arthritis, Japanese study findings indicate.

Patients with rheumatoid arthritis who have an inadequate response to initial methotrexate therapy achieve comparable improvements in disease activity with treatment optimization as with biologic DMARD therapy initiation, suggest data from the STRATEGE study.

Disease activity has been identified as a significant risk factor for impaired glucose metabolism among patients with rheumatoid arthritis.

The final analysis of the OPAL Balance long-term extension study suggests that the JAK inhibitor tofacitinib has a consistent safety profile for up to 48 months in patients with psoriatic arthritis.

Findings from two studies suggest that sprifermin has a broadly beneficial impact on joint structure in people with knee osteoarthritis, but symptomatic efficacy may be restricted to specific patient populations.

Real-world study results suggest that patients with rheumatoid arthritis who initiate treatment with oral methotrexate achieve similar disease control to those taking the subcutaneous formulation.

A large US study has evaluated the risk for developing incident rheumatic disease following a positive test for SARS-CoV-2.

Background glucocorticoid use and comorbid respiratory disease may be risk factors for developing severe COVID-19 among people with systemic vasculitis, researchers report.

Findings from a network meta-analysis suggest that the efficacy profile of peficitinib is largely similar to that of other Janus kinase inhibitors in patients with rheumatoid arthritis.

UK researchers have identified a pretreatment transcriptome signature that may be associated with a DAS28 response to adalimumab in people with rheumatoid arthritis.

The likelihood of patients with ANCA-associated vasculitis having a relapse increases if they have anti-proteinase 3 ANCA positivity, cardiovascular involvement, or low creatinine levels at diagnosis, shows a meta-analysis.

The majority of patients with rheumatic and musculoskeletal diseases develop detectable anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies after receiving their first dose of a messenger mRNA COVID-19 vaccine, US researchers report.

Patients with rheumatoid arthritis have an increased risk for death that can be attributed in part to low cardiorespiratory fitness, researchers report.

People with rheumatic and musculoskeletal diseases treated with rituximab may have a higher risk for developing severe COVID-19 than those given other treatments, researchers report.

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mRNA vaccines against SARS-CoV-2 elicit an appropriate immune response without triggering flares in people with chronic inflammatory diseases receiving immunosuppressive therapy, researchers report.

Findings from an observational study suggest that the safety profile of mRNA COVID-19 vaccines in patients with rheumatic and musculoskeletal diseases is consistent with that seen in the clinical trial populations.

A French nationwide study has described COVID-19 outcomes in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus.

Findings from the STAPRA trial suggest no protective effect of atorvastatin against the development of rheumatoid arthritis in high-risk individuals.

People with rheumatoid arthritis still have a substantial excess risk for acute myocardial infarction relative to the general population even though rates have fallen in both groups in recent years, Canadian research shows.