Juvenile Arthritis
New drug for kids with CAPS
Children in the UK who have CAPS now have access to a drug called Anakinra (Kineret).
CAPS is an umbrella term for a number of rare, life-long autoinflammatory diseases.
The drug is an interleukin-1 (IL-1) inhibitor, and can be used in children as young as eight months, says the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency. Continue reading
Meditation can change expression of pro-inflammatory genes, says new study
The first evidence of specific molecular changes in the body following a period of mindfulness meditation has been revealed in a paper published in Psychoneuroendocrinology.
Researchers looked at the effects of a day of intensive mindfulness practice in a group of experienced meditators, compared to a group of untrained people who engaged in quiet non-meditative activities.
After eight hours of mindfulness practice, the meditators showed a range of genetic and molecular differences, including altered levels of gene-regulating machinery and reduced levels of pro-inflammatory genes, which correlated with faster physical recovery from a stressful situation. Continue reading
Oxygen has a crucial role in effectiveness of anti-inflammatory drugs
Levels of oxygen play a vital part in determining the strength of the inflammatory response and how effective anti-inflammatory drugs are, says research published in the Journal of Leukocyte Biology.
The discovery could help curb runaway inflammation, benefiting those with rheumatoid arthritis, and goes some way to explaining why some people respond better to anti-inflammatory drugs than others. Continue reading
Drug launch to treat polyarticular juvenile arthritis
A drug called RoActemra (tocilizumab) is now available as a treatment option for a severe form of juvenile arthritis. Polyarticular juvenile arthritis has a poor prognosis as the remission rate is only 15% over 10 years. Around 30–40% of children with polyarticular juvenile arthritis require early joint replacement.
In 2011 RoActemra was approved for systemic juvenile idiopathic arthritis and now it’s available for children with polyarticular juvenile arthritis too. It can be given alone or in combination with methotrexate and it showed a significant reduction of flares in a clinical study. Continue reading
Chronic pain is relieved by laughter suggests new study
Laughter can help those with chronic pain, says research presented at The European Pain Federation Congress, held in Florence, Italy.
Swiss scientists found that people laughing at comedy films could keep their hands in ice water longer than those who were not laughing. And the increased pain tolerance remained 20 minutes after laughing.
It could be that humour activates the release of endorphins and relieves muscular tension and so has a subsequent effect on pain on mental and physical level. Continue reading
