Arthritis & Rheumatology News and Research

Latest Arthritis & Rheumatology News and Research

Taking blood pressure medicines as usual is important during COVID-19 pandemic

Keeping your blood pressure under control is especially important during the COVID-19 pandemic – so keep taking your blood pressure medicines!

20 May 2020

New drug treatment can reduce risk of death from COVID-19 infection

Researchers in the Ludwig Center at the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center report they have identified a drug treatment that could--if given early enough--potentially reduce the risk of death from the most serious complication of Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), also known as SARS-CoV-2 infection.

20 May 2020

Australian COVID-19 prevention trial begins for frontline and allied healthcare workers

COVID SHIELD is a major collaborative effort led by the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research in partnership with human data science company IQVIA.

19 May 2020

Texas A&M lab produces 3D-bioprinted bone tissue to benefit bone regeneration

Dr. Akhilesh K. Gaharwar, associate professor, has developed a highly printable bioink as a platform to generate anatomical-scale functional tissues. This study was recently published in the American Chemical Society's Applied Materials and Interfaces.

19 May 2020

The use of rheumatoid arthritis drug sarilumab in severe COVID-19 pneumonia

A new study published on the preprint server medRxiv* in May 2020 reports the beneficial effects of the monoclonal antibody sarilumab in severe COVID-19 pneumonia.

19 May 2020

Researchers develop novel method to diagnose and monitor autoimmune disorders

Researchers from Prokhorov General Physics Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences and the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology have developed a novel method for diagnosing and monitoring autoimmune disorders.

19 May 2020

Gene variants can increase risk of schizophrenia, shows study

Variants in a gene of the human immune system cause men and women to have different vulnerabilities to the autoimmune diseases lupus and Sjögren's syndrome, according to findings published in the journal Nature.

19 May 2020

Tocilizumab improves survival in COVID-19 patients with ARDS

The current COVID-19 pandemic caused by the SARS-CoV-2 (severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2), has already nearly 4.8 million confirmed cases and more than 318,000 deaths.

18 May 2020

Chasing the elusive dream of a COVID cure

Although scientists and stock markets have celebrated the approval for emergency use of remdesivir to treat COVID-19, a cure for the disease that has killed nearly 260,000 people remains a long way off — and might never arrive.

15 May 2020

NIH begins clinical study to evaluate hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin for COVID-19

A clinical trial has begun to evaluate whether the malaria drug hydroxychloroquine, given together with the antibiotic azithromycin, can prevent hospitalization and death from coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

14 May 2020

ACTG initiates clinical trial to evaluate treatment for COVID-19

The AIDS Clinical Trials Group, the world's largest and longest established HIV research network, today announced the initiation of ACTG 5395, a clinical trial to evaluate whether the drug combination hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin can prevent hospitalization and death from COVID-19 (which is caused by infection with the virus SARS-CoV-2).

14 May 2020

Anti-inflammatory drug may improve respiratory function in some severe COVID-19 cases

A small study in Greece found that the clinically approved anti-inflammatory drug anakinra, used to treat rheumatoid arthritis, improved respiratory function in patients with severe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

14 May 2020

11 healthcare centers participate in clinical trial of Russian drug against novel coronavirus

Initially, the drug was developed to treat rheumatoid arthritis. BIOCAD developers receive regulatory authorization as part of the procedure approved by Decree No. 441 of the Government of the Russian Federation of April 4, 2020 since the mechanism of action of the active substance is associated with the cytokine storm, a life-threatening immune system response in patients with COVID-19.

14 May 2020

Study refutes link between anti-hormonal breast cancer therapy and rheumatoid arthritis risk

Breast cancer patients do not have an increased risk of developing rheumatoid arthritis. A Swedish cohort study has now come to this conclusion.

13 May 2020

Vaccine design can face specific challenges, say researchers

The goal of a vaccine is to trigger a response that safely protects against an infection and/or the burden of disease.

13 May 2020

Excess coffee consumption can cause poor health

Cappuccino, latte or short black, coffee is one of the most commonly consumed drinks in the world. But whether it's good or bad for your health can be clarified by genetics, as a world-first study from the University of South Australia's Australian Centre for Precision Health shows that excess coffee consumption can cause poor health.

13 May 2020