A new study identified a bacterial connection between Crohn disease and peripheral spondyloarthritis (SpA) in the form of Escherichia coli (E coli).

Previous research has suggested connections between Crohn disease and SpA, but the mechanisms behind the gut microbiome’s influence on this condition are less well understood.

High levels of a type of E. coli found in patients with Crohn’s disease triggers inflammation associated with spondyloarthritis, according to a study published in Science Translational Medicine.

Individuals who have psoriasis or psoriatic arthritis are at a significantly higher risk of also suffering bone fractures, particularly in their hip and vertebrae, according to a new study published in the Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases.

New findings reveal an association between smoking and the concurrent presence of multiple rheumatoid arthritis (RA)-related autoantibodies, rather than only anti-citrullinated protein antibodies (ACPA).

Alice Gottlieb, MD, PhD, has played an intrinsic role in the evolution of the treatment of psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis. Her research, using targeted immunobiologics as pathogenic probes, provided new understanding of the pathogenesis of psoriasis and provided the foundation for biologic drug development in psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis. Throughout her career, she has taught dermatologists how to diagnose and manage psoriatic arthritis.

ABSTRACT: Patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) are at higher risk of septic and thromboembolic complications after surgery. While these patients’ cases are often complicated from a surgical perspective, we now also manage them with a variety of immunosuppressive agents that can increase the risk of postsurgical complications. Whether to withhold or continue these medications in the perioperative period is the subject of ongoing debate in the IBD surgical community.

An entirely new type of T-cell found in people with rheumatoid arthritis works in a unique way to drive disease processes in the joints by teaming up with other immune cells. The discovery of this T-cell, which is rare in other people, offers opportunities for research into more targeted treatment approaches that may turn out to be more effective and less prone to side effects than existing therapies.

A nearly $1.8 million grant given a research team at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) in Florida will be used to study an enzyme that controls cell survival and death, with the goal of developing drug candidates to treat inflammatory diseases like rheumatoid arthritis, and cardiovascular and neurodegenerative disorders. 

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved immune globulin subcutaneous [human], 20% solution (Cuvitru) to treat adults and children aged 2 years and older who have primary immunodeficiency.

Patients who are prescribed oral methotrexate for treatment of autoimmune disorders should take the medication ____________________.

a. daily

b. weekly

c. twice a week

d. a or b

e. b or c

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Answer: e