Herpes Zoster, also called shingles, is a painful skin rash caused by the varicella-zoster virus, the same virus that causes chickenpox. After a person recovers from chickenpox, the virus remains inactive in the body. Usually the virus does not cause any further problems; however, the virus may re-emerge years later, causing shingles.
New research from the University of Alabama at Birmingham casts doubt on the long-standing belief that the vaccine for shingles should not be given to patients taking biologics for auto-immune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis.
Patients with inflammatory rheumatic diseases who are treated with anti-tumor necrosis factor medications are significantly more likely to experience herpes zoster infections than those treated with traditional disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs, study results show.
Patients with inflammatory rheumatic disease treated with one of the most effective medicines for their disease face a substantially increased risk for developing shingles, warn European researchers who suggest vaccination may be an option.
Patients with inflammatory rheumatic diseases (IRD) treated with anti-tumour necrosis factor medications (anti-TNFs) have a 75% greater risk of developing herpes zoster, or shingles, than patients treated with traditional disease modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs), according to a meta-analysis presented today at EULAR 2012, the Annual Congress of the European League Against Rheumatism.
GlaxoSmithKline plc (GSK) and XenoPort, Inc. announced today that the United States (US) Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Horizant (gabapentin enacarbil) Extended-Release Tablets for the management of postherpetic neuralgia (PHN) in adults.
People who have had an episode of herpes zoster, also known as shingles, face a relatively low short-term risk of developing shingles, according to a Kaiser Permanente Southern California study published online in the Journal of Infectious Diseases. These findings suggest that among people with immune systems that have not been compromised, the risk of a second shingles episode is low.
The herpes zoster vaccine, also known as the shingles vaccine, is generally safe and well tolerated according to a Vaccine Safety Datalink study of 193,083 adults published online in the Journal of Internal Medicine.
Winston Pharmaceuticals, Inc.,, announced that the National Institutes of Health has awarded Winston a grant under the Small Business Innovation Research program supporting the development of Civamide, a proprietary TRPV-1 receptor modulator, for the treatment of postherpetic neuralgia of the trigeminal nerve.
Merck, known as MSD outside the United States and Canada, announced today that data from the pivotal Phase III study with ZOSTAVAX(Zoster Vaccine Live) in adults ages 50 to 59 were published in the April 1 issue of Clinical Infectious Diseases.
A trend toward more aggressive treatment in patients just starting to develop rheumatoid arthritis is among the most important changes in treatment guidelines for the disease, according to updated American College of Rheumatology recommendations published today in the journal Arthritis Care & Research. The trend may proceed from emerging opinions that joint damage caused by RA is irreversible, and that early, intensive therapy better preserves physical function, quality of life and capacity to work.
Today, heterosexuals in Europe are at particular risk of carrying HIV for so long that they remain undiagnosed until their immune system starts to fail and they become ill. An international study under the leadership of the HIV in Europe initiative has now revealed that a number of diseases, including herpes zoster and certain forms of cancer, should be on the list of indicators for having HIV - and thus serve to prompt health care professionals to suggest an HIV-test to their patients.
The New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) today published results from two Phase III studies (COMFORT-I and COMFORT-II) of Jakafi (ruxolitinib), a JAK1 and JAK2 inhibitor recently approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of intermediate or high-risk myelofibrosis.
Incyte Corporation today announced that further analyses from the global, pivotal Phase III clinical program of Jakafi (ruxolitinib or INC424) are being presented at the 2011 American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual Meeting.
Incyte Corporation today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted marketing approval for Jakafi (ruxolitinib) for the treatment of patients with intermediate or high-risk myelofibrosis (MF), including primary MF, post-polycythemia vera MF and post-essential thrombocythemia MF.
Millennium: The Takeda Oncology Company with its parent company Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved a supplemental new drug application (sNDA) for VELCADE (bortezomib) for Injection, which updates the label to include additional long-term overall survival (OS) data from the VISTA trial.
Spinifex Pharmaceuticals, an Australian pain drug development company, today announced the first patients have been treated in its Phase 2 clinical trial of EMA401 in postherpetic neuralgia (PHN), a painful condition that develops in some patients following herpes zoster (shingles) and where existing therapy does not relieve pain in all individuals.
Thanks to greater awareness, earlier detection and improving therapeutic agents, people with cancer are living longer than ever before. One of the consequences of living longer is the symptom burden of cancer survivorship, which may have a substantial impact on quality of life for many survivors. One such burden is the pain syndromes resulting from cancer treatments.
Spinifex Pharmaceuticals, an Australian pain drug development company, today announced it has secured a further AU$6.25 million of venture capital investment from GBS Venture Partners Limited, Brandon Capital Partners Pty Limited, Uniseed Management Pty Limited and UniQuest Pty Limited to fund the development of its pain management drug, EMA401.
Taiwanese investigators have found that there can be a significantly higher risk of multiple sclerosis (MS) occurring in the year following a shingles, or herpes zoster, attack.
Researchers from Boston University School of Medicine, along with clinicians from Boston Medical Center, have found gastroenterologist knowledge of the appropriate immunizations to recommend to the inflammatory bowel disease patient is limited.
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