Dr. Donald Miller, chair of the Pharmacy Practice department and MPH program, has been invited to attend the FDA Arthritis Drugs Advisory Committee meeting on July 22-23 as an ad hoc member of the committee.

This committee reviews and evaluates data about the safety and effectiveness of drugs taken by people to treat arthritis, rheumatism, and related diseases.  After these reviews recommendations are made to the Commissioner of Food and Drugs.

On the agenda for the July meeting is the new classification of spondyloarthritis and the first drugs to see FDA approval for this indication.  Spondyloarthritis is the name for a family of inflammatory rheumatic diseases that cause arthritis.

The meeting is going to be held at the FDA White Oak campus in Silver Spring, MD.