new medication for psoriatic arthritis

Janssen, a Johnson & Johnson company, announced that it has submitted a supplemental Biologics License Application to the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and a Type II Variation to the European Medicines Agency requesting approval of Stelara (ustekinumab) for the treatment of adults with active psoriatic arthritis. Stelara is a human interleukin (IL-12 and IL-23) antagonist. IL-12 and IL-23 are naturally-occurring cytokines thought to be associated with immune-mediated inflammatory diseases.

Stelara was approved by the FDA in 2009 for the treatment of moderate to severe plaque psoriasis in adults. The drug is currently approved in 69 countries for the treatment of plaque psoriasis. The applications requesting approval of Stelara for psoriatic arthritis are backed by Phase III clinical trials that evaluated the safety and effectiveness of 45 mg. and 90 mg. Stelara administered by subcutaneous injection.

Milk powder can prevent gout flares. Posted by Rheumatologist in Dubai.

"Daily consumption of enriched skim milk powder could help prevent gout flares," according to a proof-of-conceptstudy published in the Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases. "Compared with patients randomized to receive control treatment with simple powdered lactose, those given enriched skim milk powder had greater reductions in flares of gout during a three-month period (P=0.044), according to Nicola Dalbeth, MD, of the University of Auckland in New Zealand, and colleagues." But "there was no difference in flare frequency for patients given plain skim milk powder rather than the enriched formulation, compared with those given lactose (P=0.81)," the study found.

        "In this study, researchers at the University of Auckland in New Zealand looked at the effects of drinking a skim milk powder enriched with two dairy components, glycomacropeptide (GMP) and G600 milk fat extract (G600), on the frequency of gout attacks in 102 people," WebMD (1/24, Warner) adds. "The people were divided into three groups" and "drank either the enriched milk powder, a plain skim milk powder, or a lactose powder mixed with water as a vanilla-flavored shake each day." The study found that "after three months, the frequency of gout attacks dropped in all three groups" but "those who drank the enriched skim milk had a significantly bigger reduction in gout attacks than those in the other two groups."