Arthritis & Rheumatology News and Research

Latest Arthritis & Rheumatology News and Research

Drug trial disaster will discourage future volunteers

According to the British government agency responsible for medical safety, the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), no evidence has been found to suggest there were any problems with the manufacturing of a drug which left six volunteers seriously ill.

6 Apr 2006

MIT look at how cells make life-or-death decisions

The biological processes underlying diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis and cancer are fundamentally linked, and should be linked in how they are treated with drugs, a series of MIT studies indicates.

6 Apr 2006

Inflammation cuts both ways

Inflammation cuts both ways. When invaded by an infectious agent, for example, the body calls on the forces of inflammation to fight and defeat the intruder.

6 Apr 2006

Celebrex appears to prevent colon cancer

Researchers say they have found that high doses of the arthritis drug Celebrex reduced the number of pre-cancerous growths in the colon.

4 Apr 2006

Quality of care provided for elderly osteoarthritic patients needs improvement

Osteoarthritis is a debilitating disease affecting up to 80% of elderly adults. Among those living on their own, it is the leading cause of an inability to engage in daily activities, especially if the knee or hip is affected.

4 Apr 2006

Targeting the inflamed synovium: The quest for specificity

In the April 2006 issue of Arthritis & Rheumatism, noted rheumatology specialists with Kings College London, Dr. Toby Garrood and Dr. Costantino Pitzalis offer an overview of recent breakthroughs and a preview of future directions in this critical quest for specificity.

4 Apr 2006

Mesenchymal multipotency of adult human periosteal cells demonstrated by single-cell lineage analysis

Inflammation, cartilage and bone erosions, joint destruction--that's the typical progression of arthritis and most rheumatic diseases.

4 Apr 2006

Targeting of angiogenic endothelial cells at sites of inflammation by Dexamethasone Phosphate-containing RGD peptide liposomes inhibits experimental arthritis

Vascular endothelial cells (VECs) form the walls of blood vessels and play a critical role in inflammation.

4 Apr 2006

Mustard and garlic kick linked to single pain receptor

A single pain receptor is solely responsible for the kick delivered by mustard oil and garlic, according to research in the Cell. Mustard oil is the active ingredient in mustard and in the pungent green sushi condiment known as wasabi.

28 Mar 2006

Remicade (infliximab) gains Australian approval for treatment of early rheumatoid arthritis

Schering-Plough Corporation today announced that the Therapeutic Goods Administration of the Department of Health and Ageing in Australia has revised the indication of Remicade (infliximab) to include the treatment of early rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and approved a new indication for psoriatic arthritis (PsA).

23 Mar 2006

Stem cells, gene therapy and allograft applications show promise for treating orthopaedic conditions

Recent advances in gene therapy, stem cells and other promising applications are offering new hope for patients and helping orthopaedic surgeons provide state-of-the-art treatment for various frame-related conditions.

23 Mar 2006

Atorvastatin could prove an effective therapy for multiple sclerosis

Scientists at the University of California, San Francisco and Stanford University Medical Center are reporting compelling new evidence that the cholesterol-lowering drug atorvastatin could prove an effective therapy for preventing the progression of, and reversing the severity of, multiple sclerosis (MS).

20 Mar 2006

Study to Rituximab's potential to preserve insulin production in newly diagnosed type 1 diabetics

A drug used to treat lymphoma, rheumatoid arthritis and other immune disorders may enable newly-diagnosed type 1 diabetics to save some of their pancreas function and thereby reduce their susceptibility to long-term complications.

20 Mar 2006

Discovery of common genetic variation in an immune system gene that makes people much more likely to develop psoriasis

University of Michigan scientists have found a common genetic variation in an immune system gene that makes people much more likely to develop psoriasis - a disfiguring inflammatory skin disease.

19 Mar 2006

EntreMed announces new U.S. Patent - "Estrogenic Compounds as Anti-Mitotic Agents"

EntreMed has announced the issuance of U.S. Patent No. 7,012,070 covering methods of treatment for a broad range of indications with its lead clinical-stage compound, 2-methoxyestradiol (2ME2).

17 Mar 2006

Drug trial nightmare - two still critically ill

In the drug trial nightmare which has left six men very ill in a London Hospital two remain in intensive care and are not expected to make any early improvement, according to their doctor Ganesh Suntharalingham, Northwick Park Hospital's Clinical Director of Intensive Care.

17 Mar 2006