Author Archives: Patricia Inacio PhD

NIH Funds Project to Speed Diagnosis of Rare Diseases

The diagnosis of rare diseases such as akylosing spondylitis (AS) is complex and often delayed. A partnership between U.S. researchers aims to use artificial intelligence to develop a software to diagnose rare diseases sooner. The four-year project, led by researchers at the University of Florida Health and the Perelman School…

New Citrate-free Taltz Becoming Available for AS Patients in US

A new and citrate-free formulation of Taltz (ixekizumab) is being made available to treat adults with active ankylosing spondylitis (AS), and non-radiographic axial spondyloarthritis (nr-axSpA) patients who have signs of inflammation. Symptoms of nr-axSpA are similar to AS, but without X-ray evidence of inflammation. This formulation of the Eli Lilly therapy was…

Rinvoq Approved in Canada for Difficult-to-treat, Active AS 

Health Canada has approved Rinvoq (upadacitinib) to treat active ankylosing spondylitis (AS) in adults who fail to respond to a biologic disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drug (DMARD) or cannot tolerate these therapies. Rinvoq, developed and marketed by AbbVie, can be used alone or in combination with non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), a common first…

Cosentyx Approved in US to Treat Active nr-axSpA

Cosentyx (secukinumab) has been approved in the U.S. to treat people with active non-radiographic axial spondyloarthritis (nr-axSpA), its developer, Novartis, has announced. The approval by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) follows a similar decision by the European Commission in April. In both the…