Friday 5 from Rheumatology Network - April 30

This week, the Friday 5 from Rheumatology Network highlights the latest psoriatic arthritis news and a new mental health education program designed to reduce anxiety and depression in patients with rheumatic disease during the COVID-19 pandemic.

• SPIN-CHAT Program Reduces Anxiety and Depression Symptoms for Patients With Rheumatic Disease

The SPIN-CHAT Program was developed by investigators in order to help participants deal with isolation and learn better mental health coping mechanisms.

• Neonatal Lupus Erythematosus Risk Not Linked to Ethnicity

“In this large, multiethnic, single-center, cohort study of children born to anti-Ro antibody positive mothers, the child’s ethnicity was not associated with NLE risk, nor specific NLE manifestations,” stated investigators.

• Plaque Psoriasis Treated With Secukinumab Not Affected by Comorbid Psoriatic Arthritis

Investigators observed that patients treated with secukinumab were more likely to achieve Psoriasis Area Severity Index (PASI) 75/90/100 responses and Investigator’s Global Assessment (IGA) improvement at 52 weeks than those administered usetkinumab, regardless of their psoriatic arthritis (PsA) status.

• Philip J. Mease, MD: Guselkumab Efficacy for Psoriatic Arthritis

This week, Rheumatology Network sat down with Philip J. Mease, MD, to discuss his study, “Comparative effectiveness of guselkumab in psoriatic arthritis: results from systematic literature review and network meta-analysis.”

• Guselkumab May Improve Health-Related Quality of Life in Patients With Active Psoriatic Arthritis

“The sustained benefits for patients with active psoriatic arthritis across multiple domains indicate that guselkumab may offer a novel mechanism by which to provide extended improvements in the diverse manifestations of psoriatic arthritis,” Laura Coates, PhD, and team concluded.