Rheum Round-up: Dr. Nowell Discusses Most Important PROs for Rheumatology Pts, Adalimumab vs. Biosimilar, and more

Dr. Nowell Discusses Which PROs Are Most Important To Rheumatology Patients

In a video interview, Benjamin Nowell, Ph.D, Director of Patient-Centered Research, CreakyJoints, and principal investigator of ArthritisPower, discusses the results of a new study, “Which patient-reported outcomes do rheumatology patients find important to track digitally? A real-world longitudinal study in ArthritisPower,” published in Arthritis Research & Therapy. According to Dr. Nowell, two of the most important patient-reported outcomes (PROs) were fatigue and pain.

One of the most interesting facets of this study is the number of clinical visits that took place: zero. “I think what’s also important to recognize about the study is that it shows the feasibility of conducting a longitudinal trial virtually with digital measures using a smartphone,” Dr. Nowell explained. “Everything was completed on [the] patient’s smartphone. So, it just demonstrates that this kind of a study is possible to do, and possible to do over time.”

https://www.docwirenews.com/docwire-pick/rheumatology-picks/dr-nowell-discusses-which-pros-are-most-important-to-rheumatology-patients/

Adalimumab Versus Biosimilar: How Do These Drugs Compare in RA, PsA, PsO?

A analysis of two studies comparing adalimumab biosimilar SDZ-ADL versus reference adalimumab in PROs in patients with moderate‐to‐severe chronic plaque psoriasis, rheumatoid arthritis (RA), and psoriatic arthritis observed similar outcomes between the two treatments.

https://www.docwirenews.com/docwire-pick/rheumatology-picks/adalimumab-biosimilar-arthritis-compare/

Arthritis Drug Tocilizumab Does Not Improve Mortality in Severe COVID-19 Pneumonia

The use of tocilizumab in patients hospitalized with severe COVID-19 pneumonia was not associated with improved mortality compared to placebo, a study found, but it may have helped improve secondary outcomes, including days on mechanical ventilation and length of stay. At day 28, mortality was similar between the tocilizumab and placebo groups, but the tocilizumab group had a higher median number of ventilator-free days, as well as a shorter median time to discharge or ready to be discharged and a shorter median ICU duration.

https://www.docwirenews.com/docwire-pick/rheumatology-picks/arthritis-drug-tocilizumab-does-not-improve-mortality-in-severe-covid-19-pneumonia/

Risk for Rheumatoid Arthritis Reduced for Patients With T2DM

Finally, patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) have a reduced risk for RA, which may be due to statin use, according to a study.

https://www.docwirenews.com/docwire-pick/rheumatology-picks/risk-for-rheumatoid-arthritis-reduced-for-patients-with-t2dm/