Overdrive by Rheumatology Network

Ahead of the American College of Rheumatology 2022 Convergence meeting on Nov. 10-14, our editorial team sat down with planning committee member Zsuzsanna McMahan, MD, MHS, of Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, to take a deep dive into the upcoming meeting.

Benjamin Nowell, PhD, and Stuart Silverman, MD, FACP, FACR, discuss the recent publication of a new review article, “Cannabis for rheumatic disease pain: A review of current literature.” Investigators discovered that progress in understanding cannabis-based therapies for treating the pain associated with rheumatic disease is hindered due to a lack of standardization of clinical research and current barriers to conducting such research due to federal and state regulations. Nowell is the Director of Patient-Centered Research at CreakyJoints and principal investigator of the ArthritisPower Research Registry. Silverman is a rheumatologist and Clinical Professor of Medicine at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center and UCLA School of Medicine, as well as a faculty member of the UCLA Cannabis Research Initiative.

On this month’s episode, I spoke with Soumya D. Chakravarty, MD, PhD, to discuss the growing body of clinical evidence evaluating joint efficacy, safety and patient-reported outcomes in patients with psoriatic arthritis receiving guselkumab.

Rheumatology Network interviewed Terence Rooney, MD, to discuss the findings of a Network Meta-Analysis that examined the efficacy of guselkumab (TREMFYA) for skin clearance and joint improvements in patients with psoriatic arthritis.

On this month's episode, we interviewed Courtney Wells, PhD, MPH, MSW, to discuss the impact of COVID-19 on the quality of life of patients with rheumatic conditions, focusing on perceived risk and decision making.

Time Stamps:

1:04: What first sparked your interest in quality of life during the pandemic for generally underrepresented patients with rheumatic disease?

2:27: Can you tell me a little bit about the study design and methods used by your team to ascertain quality of life and patient perspectives?

4:29: What were the key findings of your study?

6:07: Were you surprised by the results?

9:22: Were there any strengths or limitations of the study that you’d like to discuss?

11:00: Is there anything else you’d like our audience to know before we wrap up?

Soumya Chakravarty, MD, PhD, discusses the unmet patient needs in immune-mediated diseases as well as Janssen’s work in scientific innovation that allows patients to live their lives more unburdened by their disease. Chakravarty is the Sr Director and Strategic Lead in the Rheumatology Therapeutics area at Janssen.

Time stamps:

0:45: Why do you believe fewer than 10% of patients achieve sustained clinical remission?

3:36: What are some of the unmet needs in immune-mediated diseases?

5:41: Are there any conditions that are especially suffering from this?

9:44: What are some of the scientific and experience innovations that Janssen utilizes to help drive treatment advancement?

12:21: How does Janssen focus on where the impact of disease on patients where it is highest and gaps in treatment are greatest?

16:38: How do you believe we can achieve greater numbers of patients in remission?

20:29: Can you tell me a bit about how collaboration helps patients navigate their own treatment j

E Michael Lewiecki, MD, discusses “Controversies in Osteoporosis” and “What's New in Osteoporosis for 2021?” We deep dive into recent controversies and trends in osteoporosis management, predictions for 2022, and how COVID-19 had impacted the treatment landscape for rheumatologists.

Roy Fleischmann, MD, discusses the recent Pfizer press release touching upon the safety of JAK inhibitors. He explains the recent scrutiny of JAKs, the concerns some rheumatologists have in regard to JAK inhibitors, and his personal opinions on prescribing JAK inhibiting drugs to his patients.

Time stamps:

0:47: What do rheumatologists need to know about the recent press release from Pfizer regarding the safety of JAK inhibitors?

2:47: According to analysts, the response to the safety of JAK inhibitors is not surprising. Did you expect this scrutiny in JAK inhibitors?

7:12: What are some of the concerns rheumatologist have in regards to the safety of JAK inhibitors?

9:22: What are your thoughts on prescribing JAK inhibiting drugs to your patients?

11:21: What does this mean for the future of JAK inhibitors?

11:52: Is there anything else you'd like our audience to know before you wrap up?

Rheumatology Network sat down with Andrew L Concoff MD, FACR, CAQSM, to discuss value-based care, including the benefits, collaborate approach to working with payers, the revenue and cost savings, and how value-based care can support routine and consistent health visits.

Time stamps:

0:43: What is value-based care?

1:04: How is value-based care different from fee-for-service models?

4:11: What are the revenue and cost savings of value-based care?

6:39: What are the benefits of value-based care and how does it allow for personalized patient care?

9:10: How does a collaborative approach to working with payers benefit practices and patients?

12:58: How does value-based care support routine and consistent health visits versus urgent appointments?

15:14: Is there anything else you’d like our audience to know before we wrap up?

This week, we sat down with Daniel Hernandez, MD, and Shilpa Venkatachalam, PhD, MPH, of CreakyJoints, to highlight health disparities in marginalized communities and introduce their exciting new venture, CreakyJoints Espanol.

1:17: The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed health disparities in historically marginalized communities, including Spanish speaking communities. What are some of the ways in which CreakyJoints is addressing these long-standing disparities?

5:51: How have health disparities impacted Spanish speaking patients living with rheumatologic conditions like arthritis?

7:59: What are some of the specific barriers that the Hispanic community faces securing access to doctor's diagnosis and treatments?

8:59: Hispanics have been underrepresented in medical research. Why is that?

9:55: CreakyJoints launched ArthritisPower more than 5 years ago. Why did you create Arthritis Power Espanol when the app was already available to all US people living with forms of joint bone and inf