January 2023

Safety and Efficacy of Bimekizumab in Patients With Active Ankylosing Spondylitis: Three-Year Results From a Phase IIb Randomized Controlled Trial and Its Open-Label Extension Study

Arthritis Rheumatol. 2022;74:1943–58

In this open-label extension study of BE AGILE, the safety profile of bimekizumab was found to be consistent with previously demonstrated findings, and no new safety signals were identified. The objective was to assess the long-term safety, tolerability, and efficacy of bimekizumab in patients with active AS.

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Bimekizumab in Patients with Psoriatic Arthritis, Naive To Biologic Treatment: A Randomised, Double-blind, Placebo-controlled, Phase 3 Trial (BE OPTIMAL)

Lancet. 2023 doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(22)02302-9

This study showed that bimekizumab treatment resulted in clinically meaningful and consistent improvements across multiple measures in bDMARD-naïve patients with active PsA. It aimed to assess the efficacy and safety of bimekizumab in patients with active PsA who were naive to bDMARDs.

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Influenza Adverse Events in Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis, Ulcerative Colitis, or Psoriatic Arthritis in the Tofacitinib Clinical Development Programs

Rheumatol Ther. 2022. Epub ahead of print doi: 10.1007/s40744-022-00507-z

This post-hoc analysis of 31 clinical trials in ulcerative colitis, rheumatoid arthritis and psoriatic arthritis concludes that combined influenza adverse event incidence rates were highest in ulcerative colitis, while in each indication they were generally similar across tofacitinib, placebo, and comparator groups.

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Can Patients with Controlled Rheumatoid Arthritis Taper Methotrexate From Targeted Therapy and Sustain Remission? A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

J Rheumatol. 2023;50(1):36–47 doi: 10.3899/jrheum.220152

This systematic review and meta-analysis of studies evaluated the proportion of patients in remission after the dosage of MTX was tapered, and concludes that patients with controlled RA may taper MTX from targeted therapy with a 10% reduction in the ability to sustain remission for up to 18 months.

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December 2022

Treatment Persistence of Tumour Necrosis Factors And IL-17 Inhibitors in Axial Spondyloarthritis: A Multi-Center Comparative Analysis

Joint Bone Spine 2022; 89:105416 doi: 10.1016/j.jbspin.2022.105416

In this multi-centric, real-world study, persistence with secukinumab and TNFi were not statistically different for matched populations. The primary outcome of this analysis was drug persistence, calculated as the difference in months between initiation and discontinuation.

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Implementation of the OMERACT Psoriatic Arthritis Magnetic Resonance Imaging Scoring System in a Randomized Phase IIb Study of Abatacept in Psoriatic Arthritis

Rheumatology (Oxford) 2022 doi: 10.1093/rheumatology/keac073

In this study abatacept 30/10 mg/kg and 10 mg/kg doses were associated with greater improvements from baseline in MRI detected synovitis and tenosynovitis, respectively, compared with placebo, confirming the clinical outcomes. Indeed, inflammatory components demonstrated the greatest change from baseline.

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EULAR recommendations for the management of rheumatoid arthritis with synthetic and biological disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs: 2022 update

Ann Rheum Dis. 2022. Epub ahead of print [05/12/2022] doi: 10.1136/ard-2022-223356

Smolen, et al. provide a 2022 update of the EULAR recommendations for the management of RA with synthetic and biological DMARDs.

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Safety of synthetic and biological DMARDs: a systematic literature review informing the 2022 update of the EULAR recommendations for the management of rheumatoid arthritis

Ann Rheum Dis. 2022. Epub ahead of print doi: 10.1136/ard-2022-223357

Sepriano, et al. provide results of a systematic literature review (SLR) on the safety of synthetic and biological DMARDs, to inform the 2022 update of the EULAR recommendations for the management of rheumatoid arthritis.

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Evaluation of VTE, MACE, and Serious Infections Among Patients with RA Treated with Baricitinib Compared to TNFi: A Multi-Database Study of Patients in Routine Care Using Disease Registries and Claims Databases

Rheumatol Ther. 2022. Epub ahead of print doi: 10.1007/s40744-022-00505-1

Salinas, et al. evaluate baricitinib safety with respect to VTE, MACE, and serious infection relative to TNFi in patients with RA, in routine care and observe an increased risk of VTE in patients taking baricitinib, compared to TNFi.

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