Tofacitinib Efficacy/Safety in Patients with Ankylosing Spondylitis by Baseline Body Mass Index: A Post Hoc Analysis of Phase 2/3 Trials.

Introduction: We assessed tofacitinib efficacy and safety in ankylosing spondylitis (AS) by body mass index (BMI) category.

Methods: Data were pooled from phase 2/3 trials; analyses included patients with active AS randomized (1:1) to tofacitinib 5 mg twice daily or placebo, who were stratified by baseline BMI into < 25, ≥ 25 to < 30, and ≥ 30 kg/m categories. Efficacy was assessed at week 12 and safety to week 16.

Are There Disease Endotypes in Axial Spondyloarthritis and How Would We Define Them?

Is axial spondyloarthritis (axSpA) one disease or does it comprise multiple types? If the latter, how do we define those types-through clinical or imaging features, HLA-B27 status, or by other immunologic features? Data comparing disease outcomes for individuals with nonradiographic vs radiographic axSpA, or for male vs female patients, demonstrate distinctions. So then, how should we define endotypes? Endotypes are known as the subtype of a health condition defined by a functional or pathophysiologic function. Here, we review the endotypes used for defining rheumatoid arthritis, asthma, and psoriatic arthritis.

Imaging Mass Cytometry in Psoriatic Disease Reveals Immune Profile Heterogeneity in Skin and Synovial Tissue.

Imaging mass cytometry is a technology that enables comprehensive analysis of cellular phenotypes at the tissue level. We performed a multiparameter characterization of structural and immune cell populations in psoriatic skin and synovial tissue samples aimed at characterizing immune cell differences in patients with psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis. A panel of 33 antibodies was used to stain selected immune and structural cell populations.

Psoriasis and Psoriatic Arthritis Clinics Multicenter Advancement Network Consortium (PPACMAN) 2021 Annual Meeting Proceedings.

The Psoriasis and Psoriatic Arthritis Clinics Multicenter Advancement Network (PPACMAN) is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to optimize the clinical care of patients with psoriatic disease through multidisciplinary collaboration models. The PPACMAN 2021 Annual Meeting was held virtually on December 11, 2021. In all, 50 stakeholders participated in the meeting including dermatologists, rheumatologists, cardiologists, clinical researchers, patient advocacy representatives, and industry representatives.

Utility of factor D and other alternative complement factors as biomarkers in systemic sclerosis-associated pulmonary arterial hypertension (SSc-PAH).

Background: Activation of the complement cascade is thought to play a role in scleroderma vasculopathy. We previously showed that complement factor D was elevated in patients with limited cutaneous SSc and pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). In this study, we sought to assess multiple relevant components of the complement cascade to determine if they are altered in SSc-PAH, as well as their potential utility as biomarkers of disease severity and progression.