Antiphospholipid Syndrome News

Rheumatology patients treated with interleukin inhibitors have an increased risk for serious infections, opportunistic infections and cancer, according to data published in JAMA Open Network.

Rivaroxaban failed to demonstrate noninferiority to dose-adjusted vitamin K antagonists in patients with thrombotic antiphospholipid syndrome, and the agent even showed a nonsignificant doubling of the risk for recurrent thrombosis, according to results from an open-label, randomized, noninferiority trial published in the Annals of Internal Medicine.

By the time Lilly Stairs was diagnosed with psoriatic arthritis at the age of 19 — following an arduous series of tests and doctor visits — she had already been living with an autoimmune disease for 12 years.

Identifying high-risk factors for thrombotic and obstetric events is crucial in managing antiphospholipid syndrome, and all women with antiphospholipid syndrome should be counseled on contraceptive use, pregnancy planning and postmenopausal hormone therapy, according to new EULAR recommendations published in the Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases.

Political activism is more accessible than ever thanks to the amplification offered by social media, and rheumatologists can use social media — particularly Twitter — to advocate for the profession and their patients, according to Angus Worthing, MD, private practice rheumatologist and chair of the Government Affairs Committee for the American College of Rheumatology.

In the ever-changing landscape of the United States health care system, rheumatologists need a voice. They need a voice in managing the complex web of drug pricing structures, a voice in developing clinical guidelines, and, on a fundamental level, a voice in simply communicating with all the players involved in running the day-to-day operations of a rheumatology practice.

More than 620 registered attendees from 45 states and 11 countries are traveling to Destin, Florida, this week for the 2019 Congress of Clinical Rheumatology, scheduled for May 2 to 5, according to David McLain, MD, FACP, FACR, where they will learn about a wide range of topics from speakers they may not hear anywhere else.

Antiphospholipid syndrome has an annual incidence rate of 2.1 per 100,000, with an estimated prevalence of 50 individuals per 100,000 with a notably higher incidence among patients older than 55 years, according to data published in Arthritis & Rheumatology.

Faced with an increasing incidence and prevalence of autoimmune disease in the United States —approximately 23.5 million Americans are affected across the country, according to the NIH — Bonnie Feldman, MBA, DDS, says it is time to acknowledge what she calls “an invisible epidemic.”

More than 500 patient advocates met in Washington, D.C., this week in recognition of National Rare Disease Week, where they aim to educate and lobby members of Congress, as well as empower themselves to become better voices for those with conditions that seldom get the spotlight.