Two drugs better than one for RA
For adults with early, aggressive rheumatoid arthritis (RA), treatment with a combination of Humira (adalimumab) and methotrexate appears to be more effective than treatment with either agent alone, according to results of the PREMIER study.
Humira is a human antibody designed to block a protein known as tumor necrosis factor, which plays a key role in inflammation. So-called TNF-blockers such as Humira have brought relief to many people with inflammatory conditions such as RA or the intestinal disorder Crohn’s disease.
Ukraine lifts bird flu state of emergency
President Viktor Yushchenko lifted the state of emergency in Ukraine’s Crimea as an outbreak of the deadly H5N1 bird flu in the region has been eliminated, a presidential decree said on Thursday.
Ukraine reported its first outbreak of the disease in a dozen villages on the peninsula, a major stopover point for migratory birds, in late November.
One-Year Registry Data for Uterine Fibroid Embolization
One-year data from the largest, multi-center, prospective voluntary registry on any procedure for benign uterine fibroids showed that over 85 percent of women had significant improvement in symptoms, with 82 percent satisfied with their level of improvement. The Registry, designed to follow the “real world” outcomes for uterine fibroid embolization as it became a mainstream treatment widely available across the country, collected data on symptom relief, quality of life, subsequent care, satisfaction with outcome, and menstrual status on 1,701 women who had non-surgical uterine fibroid embolization (UFE).
The Fibroid Registry for Outcomes Data (FIBROID) also showed women’s quality of life scores improved significantly, and only 2.9 percent of patients required a hysterectomy within a year of having UFE. UFE is a minimally invasive interventional radiology treatment that blocks the blood supply to the fibroid tumors, causing them to shrink and die, and symptoms to subside.
Stroke risk increases when children with sickle cell disease cease transfusions
Stopping regular blood transfusions in children with sickle cell disease who are at risk for a stroke means their stroke risk likely will return, researchers have found.
A study of children whose stroke risk was reduced by blood transfusions found that within a few months of halting transfusion, 14 of the 41 children resumed at-risk status and two children had strokes, says Dr. Robert J. Adams, neurologist and stroke specialist at the Medical College of Georgia who authored the article in the Dec. 29 New England Journal of Medicine.
Romania confirms deadly bird flu in six villages
Romania confirmed the presence of the deadly bird flu strain in six villages east of Bucharest on Thursday after test results from a British laboratory detected the H5N1 virus in suspect poultry.
Bird flu was detected in the villages earlier this month but Romania is not able to test for the highly pathogenic strain and had to send samples to Britain for confirmation.
Age no bar to clot-busters for stroke
Although elderly stroke patients have a greater risk of dying following treatment with the commonly used clot-buster called tPA (tissue plasminogen activator), age is not an independent predictor of outcome, Swiss researchers report in Neurology.
Commenting on the findings, Dr. J. Claude Hemphill III, co-author of an editorial in the medical journal, told Reuters Health, tPA “should not be withheld from acute stroke patients just because they are very old.”
Vertebroplasty Improves Back Pain, Activity Level
A Mayo Clinic study has found patients report less back pain at rest and while active following vertebroplasty, a procedure in which medical cement is injected into painful compression fractures in the spinal vertebrae due to osteoporosis. Patients also reported improved function in their daily activities, such as walking, housework and getting dressed. The findings are published in the November/December issue of American Journal of Neuroradiology, http://www.ajnr.org.
“These findings give us as good evidence as there is—in a study without a group receiving another or no treatment for comparison—that patients are more functional for up to a year after vertebroplasty than before vertebroplasty,” says David Kallmes, M.D., the Mayo Clinic neuroradiologist who led the study.
National Glaucoma Awareness Month
Glaucoma is an important public health problem in the United States, affecting at least 2 million people. It is the second leading cause of blindness and the leading cause of blindness among African-Americans. Yet it is estimated that half of those suffering from the disease in this country remain undiagnosed. The Department of Veterans Affairs urges everyone over 40 to seek screening for glaucoma during January which is National Glaucoma Awareness Month. People with a higher risk than others of getting the disease include:
