Publications by authors named "Benjamin D Schwartz"
Article Synopsis
- Vamorolone, a glucocorticoid receptor agonist, was tested to assess its effectiveness and safety over 48 weeks compared to prednisone in children with Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD).
- A double-blind clinical trial involved 121 participants aged 4 to under 7 years, receiving varying doses of vamorolone and prednisone, with improvements monitored in motor skills and growth.
- Results indicated that vamorolone (6 mg/kg/day) maintained motor skill improvements over 48 weeks, with significant growth benefits seen after participants switched from prednisone to vamorolone.
Article Synopsis
- Long-term use of corticosteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs can negatively impact patient quality of life, highlighting the need for safer alternatives.
- The study tested vamorolone, a new type of dissociative steroid, for its effectiveness and safety in boys aged 4 to under 7 with Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) over a 24-week period.
- Results showed that vamorolone (6 mg/kg) significantly improved motor function compared to placebo, while the safety profile was potentially better than traditional corticosteroids.
Article Synopsis
- Vamorolone is a synthetic steroid that shows strong anti-inflammatory effects, and earlier studies indicated it improved motor function in boys with Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) after 6 months of high-dose treatment.
- This study aimed to evaluate the outcomes of 30 months of ongoing vamorolone treatment in DMD patients, conducted by the Cooperative International Neuromuscular Research Group across multiple locations.
- Results indicated that while the mean time-to-stand velocity of participants on higher doses of vamorolone showed a slight decrease over the treatment period, this change was not statistically significant, suggesting the need for further research.
Article Synopsis
- Vamorolone is a new investigational drug for treating Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) that aims to reduce muscle weakness without some of the negative effects seen with long-term corticosteroid use.
- In an 18-month study involving participants aged 4 to 7, vamorolone showed significant clinical improvements in motor functions compared to baseline measurements.
- The study also compared outcomes from vamorolone-treated patients with those on no corticosteroids and those already receiving corticosteroid treatment, finding similar improvements in standing ability for vamorolone and corticosteroid-naïve participants.
Article Synopsis
- The study evaluated vamorolone, a novel anti-inflammatory drug, in 48 boys aged 4-7 with Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) to determine the optimal dosage and effectiveness.
- Conducting a 24-week trial with varying doses (0.25, 0.75, 2.0, and 6.0 mg/kg/d), researchers found that the 2.0 mg/kg/d dose significantly improved muscle function without the common side effects associated with glucocorticoids.
- Results indicated that vamorolone was safe and well-tolerated, showing potential benefits in bone health and lower risk of adrenal suppression and insulin resistance compared to traditional glucocorticoid treatments.
Article Synopsis
- The study investigates vamorolone, a new type of steroidal anti-inflammatory drug, in boys aged 4 to under 7 with Duchenne muscular dystrophy over a 2-week period.
- The results show that vamorolone was safe and well-tolerated, with improved safety profiles such as reduced insulin resistance and adrenal suppression compared to traditional glucocorticoids.
- The research also indicated that vamorolone has potential anti-inflammatory effects, suggesting it could preserve the benefits of steroids while minimizing their negative side effects, with further studies planned to explore clinical outcomes.
Objective: To evaluate the efficacy and safety of tacrolimus as monotherapy in controlling the signs and symptoms of patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA).
Methods: This was a 6-month, phase III, double-blind, multicenter study. Patients with active RA who had discontinued all disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs) for an appropriate washout period (at least 1 month) and who, after the washout period, had a stable joint count (at least 10 tender/painful joints and 7 swollen joints) were stratified according to DMARD intolerance or DMARD resistance, and randomized to receive a single daily oral dose of placebo, tacrolimus 2 mg, or tacrolimus 3 mg.
Objective: To assess the safety of tacrolimus used in combination with oral methotrexate (MTX) to control the signs and symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) in patients whose disease remains active despite treatment with MTX.
Methods: This was a multicenter open-label study conducted at 13 US sites. Eighty patients who at baseline had active RA (mean tender/painful joint count 29.
The discovery of two isoforms of the cyclooxygenase enzyme, COX-1 and COX-2, and the development of COX-2-specific inhibitors as anti-inflammatories and analgesics have offered great promise that the therapeutic benefits of NSAIDs could be optimized through inhibition of COX-2, while minimizing their adverse side effect profile associated with inhibition of COX-1. While COX-2 specific inhibitors have proven to be efficacious in a variety of inflammatory conditions, exposure of large numbers of patients to these drugs in postmarketing studies have uncovered potential safety concerns that raise questions about the benefit/risk ratio of COX-2-specific NSAIDs compared to conventional NSAIDs. This article reviews the efficacy and safety profiles of COX-2-specific inhibitors, comparing them with conventional NSDAIDs.
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