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FDA Update on Impending Methotrexate Shortage (2/21/12)

Tue, 21 Feb 2012 13:49:55 +0000

There has been tremendous concern about the impending short supply of injectable methotrexate, especially for children with cancer who require large quantities. Some rheumatoid arthritis patients also use injectable methotrexate rather than oral methotrexate, so they too have been concerned. The FDA issued an update on the status of the shortage today -- and the news is good.

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Few Trials of Biologic DMARDs for Rheumatoid Arthritis Are Head-to-Head

Tue, 21 Feb 2012 13:13:29 +0000

Study results, in the February 13, 2012 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, point out that there are very few head-to-head clinical trials of biologic DMARDs...

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Women With Rheumatoid Arthritis and Lupus Have Fewer Kids Than Planned

Sat, 18 Feb 2012 20:03:27 +0000

According to study results published online February 16, 2012 in Arthritis Care & Research, more than half of the young women diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis and lupus had fewer children than they had hoped to have. The study included 578 women with rheumatoid arthritis and 114 with lupus who completed a questionnaire about their reproductive history. The women were classified as interested in having children when symptoms began but who had fewer than they planned to have, interested in having children when symptoms began and had the number of children planned, or not interested in having children by the time their disease was diagnosed.

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Cancer Rate Is Four Times Higher in Kids With Juvenile Arthritis

Tue, 14 Feb 2012 01:50:37 +0000

The rate of cancer is 4 times higher in children with juvenile idiopathic arthritis compared to kids without the disease. While the primary suspect might seem like it would be treatment with TNF blockers...

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Injectable Methotrexate in Serious Short Supply

Sat, 11 Feb 2012 22:09:10 +0000

The New York Times reported on February 10, 2012 that methotrexate, a drug used to treat childhood leukemia (specifically, acute lymphoblastic leukemia) and rheumatoid arthritis, is in critical short supply. The supply of injectable methotrexate is not meeting the demand. Hospitals across the U.S. may deplete their existing stock within the next two weeks.

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Information and Warnings About PPI Drugs for Arthritis Patients

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 19:29:46 +0000

More information has surfaced about adverse effects associated with PPI drugs (proton pump inhibitors such as Nexium, Prevacid, Protonix, Aciphex). A study published in the January 31, 2012 issue of the British Medical Journal concluded that chronic use of PPIs is associated with increased risk of hip fracture, especially among women who smoked. The report backs the U.S. FDA's decision to revise labeling of PPI drugs to include information about increased risk of fracture among patients treated with high doses or treated with a PPI for one year or more.

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Joint Surgery Becoming Less Common Among Rheumatoid Arthritis Patients

Wed, 08 Feb 2012 20:06:44 +0000

According to a report published online January 15, 2012 in the Journal of Rheumatology, the rates of joint surgery continue to decrease for rheumatoid arthritis patients, especially those who have been more recently diagnosed. Previous studies recognized declining rates of joint surgery among patients diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis since 1985. In the study published online in January, researchers accessed medical records of patients diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis from 1980-2007, using data from the Rochester Epidemiology Project, and evaluated whether the trend continued since 1995.

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Obesity Increases Symptom Severity in Fibromyalgia Patients

Tue, 07 Feb 2012 19:37:56 +0000

According to a Mayo Clinic study published in the February 2012 issue of Arthritis Care & Research, there is an association ...

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Risk of Non-serious Infection Increases With Steroid Use for Rheumatoid Arthritis

Sun, 05 Feb 2012 19:28:58 +0000

It is known that oral glucocorticoid therapy, such as prednisone or prednisolone, increases the risk of serious infection (infection leading to hospitalization, intravenous antibiotics, disability or death). There have not been many studies that evaluated the risk of non-serious infection though. Study results published February 1, 2012 in the Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases concluded that glucocorticoid therapy is associated with an increased risk of non-serious infection. The risk was found to increase with dose and is greater than the risk for non-serious infection associated with methotrexate.

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Bugged by Joint Deformity Related to Arthritis?

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 13:36:43 +0000

Joint deformity is characteristic of certain types of arthritis. Ulnar deviation (joint deformity of the hand) is often associated with rheumatoid arthritis. Since it's visible, it can be a telltale sign that someone has the disease. Other joints may be associated with deformity besides the hands. For example, the knees may have a valgus or varus deformity (knock-kneed or bow-legged).

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