https://medicalxpress.com/rheumatology-news/ en-us Latest medical news and research in Rheumatology Microbiology researchers from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, have discovered why patients with the autoimmune disease lupus are susceptible to serious bacterial infections. Their new study published in Cell Press Blue shows that lupus-associated inflammatory signals can reprogram white blood cells, rendering them less effective against Staphylococcus aureus infection. Instead of producing the most protective antibacterial response, these neutrophils shift toward a less effective form of neutrophil extracellular trap (NET). https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-08-lupus-linked-immune-misdirection-patients.html Mon, 03 Aug 2026 13:40:03 EDT news704980201 New genetic risk factors have been identified for fibromyalgia syndrome in a landmark study that involved scientists at King's College London. The study, published in Nature Medicine, highlights how the nervous system plays an important role in the development of the disorder. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-genetic-factors-fibromyalgia-largest-kind.html Tue, 28 Jul 2026 05:00:03 EDT news704366821 A study published online in the open-access journal RMD Open has linked specific imbalances and disruptions in the oral microbiome to symptomatic hand arthritis. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-imbalances-oral-microbiome-linked-symptomatic.html Tue, 21 Jul 2026 18:30:05 EDT news703851062 Interferon alpha is an inflammatory mediator that can cause Sjögren's syndrome, an autoimmune disease. This was revealed in a study carried out by University Hospital Bonn together with the University of Bonn, the University of Edinburgh and Newcastle University. Their findings, published in the journal Lancet Rheumatology, could make it easier in the medium term to develop drugs to fight this chronic condition. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-07-interferon-alpha-sjgren-disease-patients.html Mon, 20 Jul 2026 10:40:08 EDT news703760456 Scientists at UT Health San Antonio, the academic health center of The University of Texas at San Antonio, have found a link between a bacterium in the gut microbiome (ecosystem) and lupus that could lead to more effective treatment of the disease, described in a study published in Nature Communications. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-06-potential-probiotic-treatment-lupus.html Thu, 25 Jun 2026 18:00:03 EDT news701626442 In autoimmune disorders, immune cells targeting "self" proteins are mistakenly activated, resulting in abnormal expansion and responsiveness. These disorders are known to reduce patients' quality of life over a prolonged period. This can be attributed to CD4+ T cells, which play a key role in inducing persistent inflammation, recruiting other immune cells, including antibody-producing B cells, and inflicting tissue damage. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-06-immune-cellfibroblast-crosstalk-key-trigger.html Wed, 24 Jun 2026 18:40:02 EDT news701536083 Researchers at Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS) have identified a specialized population of immune cells that plays a central role in driving abnormal tissue growth in rheumatoid arthritis (RA), offering new insight into disease progression and potential treatment strategies. The study, published in Science Translational Medicine, reveals that a subset of immune cells known as SPP1ʰⁱ macrophages works in tandem with structural cells and protein scaffolds to promote excessive tissue expansion in the joints of patients with RA. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-06-hidden-mechanism-joint-tissue-growth.html Wed, 24 Jun 2026 15:20:01 EDT news701531835 As an aging population experiences joint pain and inflammation at an all-time high, researchers at The University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH), a part of The University of Alabama System, have published new findings suggesting continuous low-intensity ultrasound may help shift the body's immune response from prolonged inflammation toward tissue repair, a discovery that could eventually contribute to novel treatments for joint injuries and post-traumatic osteoarthritis. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-06-ultrasound-based-approach-inflammation-joint.html Fri, 19 Jun 2026 10:20:01 EDT news701081161 Early results from a UCL- and UCLH-led clinical trial suggest that a type of CAR T-cell therapy—developed by Autolus Therapeutics, a UCL spinout—could offer a new treatment approach for people with severe, treatment-resistant lupus. The findings, presented at the EULAR European Congress of Rheumatology (EULAR 2026), come from the ongoing Phase I CARLYSLE study, which is evaluating obecabtagene autoleucel (obe-cel) in patients with severe refractory systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). The early data indicate that the therapy has a favorable safety profile and may lead to meaningful improvements in disease activity. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-06-car-cell-therapy-early-severe.html Mon, 15 Jun 2026 17:20:06 EDT news700739769 Sjögren's disease is a widespread chronic autoimmune disorder that attacks the body's own glands, yet its underlying disease mechanisms remain poorly understood. In a recent study, researchers from Japan discovered a self-reinforcing loop between different immune cells that sustains autoimmune responses in patients with Sjögren's disease. Their findings pave the way for safer and more effective therapies. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-06-scientists-reveal-autoimmune-vicious-sjgren.html Thu, 11 Jun 2026 09:00:04 EDT news700386541 A clinical trial led by researchers from Hospital Clínic de Barcelona, the August Pi i Sunyer Biomedical Research Institute (IDIBAPS) and the Institute of Advanced Chemistry of Catalonia (IQAC-CSIC) compared the effectiveness of abatacept and hydroxychloroquine in preventing the development of rheumatoid arthritis in patients with palindromic rheumatism, an autoimmune disease that progresses to arthritis in approximately half of all patients. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-06-drug-rheumatoid-arthritis-clinical-trial.html Wed, 10 Jun 2026 17:20:04 EDT news700323722 A combination of two widely available anti-rheumatic drugs offers the first effective and affordable treatment for patients with Sjögren's disease with systemic disease activity, according to new results from a clinical trial coordinated by UMC Utrecht. The study showed that treatment with leflunomide and hydroxychloroquine reduced disease activity in patients with moderate-to-severe disease while maintaining a favorable safety profile. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-06-common-arthritis-drugs-sjgren-disease.html Sat, 06 Jun 2026 15:40:03 EDT news699978269 Stanford Medicine researchers and their colleagues found that a new drug, obexelimab, significantly reduces the risk of relapse in patients with IgG4-related disease, a rare chronic immune condition often misdiagnosed as cancer. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-06-drug-relapse-rare-immune-disorder.html Thu, 04 Jun 2026 15:20:07 EDT news699803308 Researchers at University Medical Center Utrecht have uncovered a previously underappreciated mechanism that helps immune cells to respond rapidly to infections. Using advanced long-read RNA sequencing, the team shows that alternative RNA splicing, which means how genes are edited into different messenger RNA variants, plays a central role in shaping immune responses. The findings provide new insights into immune-mediated diseases (such as infections, rheumatoid arthritis and lupus) and may open the door to more targeted therapies. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-06-rna-sequencing-method-reveals-hidden.html Tue, 02 Jun 2026 18:40:03 EDT news699636061 A major international study led by researchers at the Kennedy Institute of Rheumatology at the University of Oxford has found that osteoarthritis (OA)—the most common form of arthritis worldwide—is not a collection of separate diseases, as many scientists had previously speculated, but rather a single condition with common core underlying biological pathways. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-06-largest-knee-osteoarthritis-tissue-reveals.html Tue, 02 Jun 2026 15:20:02 EDT news699623101 Chikungunya virus, which is transmitted to people by infected Aedes mosquitoes and characterized by high fever and intense joint swelling and pain, has made a resurgence in many countries around the world in recent years. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-05-chikungunya-virus-infections-chronic.html Sat, 30 May 2026 16:00:02 EDT news699190591 According to researchers at Semmelweis University, not only inflammation, but also sleep disorders, depression, obesity, and smoking may sustain persistent rheumatic symptoms. In their publications in the journals Nature Reviews Rheumatology and The Lancet Rheumatology, they also proposed a model that can help identify and treat the true causes of symptoms in time. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-05-depression-consequence-rheumatoid-arthritis.html Thu, 28 May 2026 10:40:06 EDT news699180361 At age 49, Jan Janisch-Hanzlik's multiple sclerosis was destroying her freedom to live the life she wanted. She gave up her active nursing job for a desk role. Frequent falls made her afraid to carry her grandchildren. She had to move to a bigger house to make room for the wheelchair she feared she might end up needing full-time. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-05-car-cancer-autoimmune-disease-immune.html Tue, 26 May 2026 11:40:01 EDT news699012782 Involving a collaboration with 118 investigators contributing from 89 institutions, scientists from Queen Mary University of London's Precision Healthcare University Research Institute and Berlin Institute of Health (BIH) at Charité have led the world's largest study on the genetic regulation of blood proteins. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-05-blood-protein-people-uncovers-disease.html Wed, 06 May 2026 15:20:27 EDT news697289341