MSK Report News

Saturday, September 24, 2005 Orthopaedics: Orthopaedic Surgeons, Neurologists Often Fail to Refer Patients for DEXA Exams
Even with the availability of training programs and educational literature, it is rare for many orthopaedic surgeons and neurologists, physicians who regularly see patients at high risk for fractures, to refer these patients for assessment of bone mineral density (BMD)... Presented at: 27^th Annual Meeting of the American Society for Bone and Mineral Research; September 23-25, 2005; Nashville, Tennessee.

Friday, September 23, 2005 General: FDA Issues "Non-Approvable Letter" for Pfizer's Injectable COX-2 Drug
Just 1 week after receiving a nonapprovable letter for their new osteoporosis drug lasofoxifene (Oporia), Pfizer Inc announced Tuesday that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued a nonapprovable letter for parecoxib sodium, an injectable COX-2 inhibitor used to treat acute pain in the postsurgical setting... Pfizer receives FDA non-approvable letter on parecoxib [press release]. PR Newswire; September 20, 2005.

Wednesday, September 21, 2005 Latest News: Low-Dose Safer Than High-Dose Steroids in Rheumatoid Arthritis
A new literature review suggests that the toxicity associated with glucocorticoids is largely a result of higher doses, a finding that may serve to restore greater use of long-term, low-dose glucorticoid therapy in rheumatoid arthritis (RA)... Da Silva JAP, et al. Ann Rheum Dis [serial online]. August 26, 2005.

Tuesday, September 20, 2005 Osteoporosis: Link Between Genetic Factors and Osteoporotic Fractures in the Elderly
The predisposition for osteoporotic fractures is stronger than has been previously estimated, especially for early occurring fractures. A search for genes and gene-environmental interactions that affect early osteoporotic fracture risk is likely to be beneficial, but fracture-prevention should be focused on lifestyle habits...Michaëlsson K, et al. Arch Intern Med. 2005;165:1825-1830.

Monday, September 19, 2005 Rheumatology: A Leading Rheumatologist Reflects on How Cyclooxygenase Became a Household Word
Just as it appeared that the dust from the great COX-2 controversies had begun to settle, a jury in Texas awarded a plaintiff a judgment against Merck & Co for one quarter of a billion dollars - indeed, for a death that, arguably, was not Vioxx-related.

Monday, September 19, 2005 Pain: Abuse-Resistant Oxycodone Clears Trial
Remoxy, a new oxycodone compound, may change the tide of abuse by making injection or snorting difficult due to its sticky, high-viscosity formulation...

Friday, September 16, 2005 General: Abatacept Beneficial to Patients with RA Refractory to TNF-α Inhibitors
Abatacept has shown benefit to rheumatoid arthritis patients with inadequate response to tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α inhibitors, according to the results of a randomized, double-blind study...Genovese MC, et al. N Engl J Med. 2005;353:1114-1123.

Tuesday, September 13, 2005 General: Two New Treatments Show Promise in Paget's Disease
Zoledronic acid and osteoprotegerin found to be promising new therapies for the management of Paget's disease... Reid IR, et al. N Engl J Med. 2005;353:898-908; Cundy MD, et al. N Engl J Med. 2005;353:918-923.

Tuesday, September 13, 2005 Arthritis: Low-Dose Aspirin May Protect Against Cardiac Hypertrophy and Cardiac Fibrosis in Coxib Users
New murine studies suggest that low-dose aspirin may mitigate the cardiovascular damage known to arise from use of cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) inhibitors... Francois H, et al. Cell Metabolism. 2005;2:201-207.

Friday, September 09, 2005 Latest News: FDA Arthritis Advisory Committee Gives Preliminary Go-ahead to Abatacept
A Food and Drug Administration Arthritis Advisory Committee unanimously recommended approval of Orencia®  (abatacept) Tuesday, stating that the benefits of the costimulation blocker for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) outweighed the risks of serious infections like pneumonia and some cancers.