Inflammation

These are indeed strange and scary times for us all and this month’s cover story takes us into territory we would have found disorienting and completely unrelated to the field of rheumatology only a short generation ago: cytokine storm syndrome. We are indebted to our esteemed faculty, including Randy Q. Cron, MD, PhD, of the University of Alabama at Birmingham, and Maximilian F. Konig, MD, of The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, who will discuss the cutting edge of this rapidly evolving field.

The global market for artificial tears was estimated to be $1,609 million in 2018, and it is expected to continue to grow. With so many people buying and using artificial tears, it merits an assessment of their utility.

Treatment with immune globulin led to left ventricular systolic function recovery in children with acute cardiac decompensation from inflammation associated with COVID-19, according to a study published in Circulation.

As a general rule, rheumatologists are comfortable with ambiguous diagnoses, given that so many of the conditions they manage are marked by a wide spectrum of presentations and manifestations. A prime example is axial spondyloarthritis, which is divided into two categories: radiographic axial spondyloarthritis — also called ankylosing spondylitis — and nonradiographic axial spondyloarthritis. Discussion surrounding the nonradiographic form of this disease has been known to prompt the almost preposterous fundamental question: Is it even a thing?

A new proof-of-concept study will examine the role of progesterone in reducing inflammation caused by COVID-19. This was the top story in endocrinology last week.

Simultaneous neutralization of Ang-2 and VEGF-A with faricimab has the potential to reduce vascular destabilization in age-related macular degeneration, achieving sustained efficacy with a significantly lower frequency of administration as compared with ranibizumab.

Of the many complications reported to accompany COVID-19, one of the most vexing to researchers has been the “cytokine storm,” or the body’s overactive immune response to a viral infection. The phenomenon — observed in some patients, but not others — can complicate clinical decision-making during a time when there are no treatments and no vaccine. Researchers are searching for possible therapies that may inhibit inflammation, such as the sex hormone progesterone.

Identifying which patients respond quickly to dietary therapies for Crohn’s disease may help indicate which ones will succeed long term and which ones might do better on a different therapy, according to study results.

CytoSorbents Corp. announced that its blood purification technology for the treatment of deadly inflammation and cytokine storm has been granted Emergency Use Authorization by the FDA for patients with COVID-19.

Exposure to ambient particulate matter less than 2.5 µm may affect CV benefits from intensive BP lowering, according to a post hoc analysis of the SPRINT trial presented at the American College of Cardiology Scientific Session.