September 2023

Anti-GM-CSF Otilimab Versus Tofacitinib or Placebo in Patients With Active Rheumatoid Arthritis and an Inadequate Response to Conventional or Biologic DMARDs: Two Phase 3 Randomised Trials (contRAst 1 and contRAst 2)

Ann Rheum Dis 2023;0:1–11 doi 10.1136/ard-2023-224482

Fleischmann, et al investigated the safety and efficacy of otilimab versus tofacitinib and placebo in RA patients treated with MTX (contRAst 1) or csDMARDs (contRAst 2). They found that while otilimab achieved the primary endpoint of ACR20 versus placebo in Week 12, it did not demonstrate non-inferiority to tofacitinib.

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Bimekizumab Treatment in Biologic DMARD-Naïve Patients with Active Psoriatic Arthritis: 52-Week Efficacy and Safety Results from the Phase III, Randomised, Placebo-Controlled, Active Reference BE OPTIMAL Study

Ann Rheum Dis. 2023;82(11):1404–1414 doi: 10.1136/ard-2023-224431

Data from this phase 3 RCT demonstrated that the efficacy of bimekizumab observed at 16 weeks remained consistent through to 52 weeks in the treatment of bDMARD-naïve patients with PsA. Patients who started the trial on placebo and switched to bimekizumab at week 16 showed similar improvements to those patients who were randomised to receive bimekizumab at the start of the trail. No new safety signals were identified.

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Treatment with Upadacitinib in Active Psoriatic Arthritis: Efficacy and Safety Data of the First 192 Patients from the UPJOINT Study, a Multicentre, Observational Study in Clinical Practice

Rheumatol Ther. 2023;10(6):1503–1508 doi: 10.1007/s40744-023-00589-3

In the UPJOINT open label study, the proportion of patients with PsA, and an inadequate response to csDMARDs or bDMARDs, who achieved minimal disease activity with upadacitinib was in line with the results of previous studies at 24 weeks. No new safety signals were identified.

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Prevention of Radiographic Progression in Higher-Risk Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis Using Filgotinib in Phase III Studies: Narrative Review of Post Hoc Analyses

Rheumatol Ther. 2023;10(6):1399–1415 doi: 10.1007/s40744-023-00590-w

Findings from post hoc analyses extend the knowledge base for radiographic benefits of filgotinib in patients with RA.

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Safety and efficacy of mirikizumab versus secukinumab and placebo in the treatment of moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis (OASIS-2): a phase 3, multicentre, randomised, double-blind study

Lancet Rheumatol 2023;5:e542–52. doi: 10.1016/S2665-9913(23)00120-0

Week 16 primary outcomes of improved PASI 90 response and sPGA score demonstrated Mirikizumab superiority to placebo and non-inferiority to secukinumab. This study presented results from the OASIS-2 trial on the safety and efficacy of mirikizumab compared with secukinumab and placebo in patients with moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis.

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August 2023

Differential Properties of Janus Kinase Inhibitors in the Treatment of Immune-mediated Inflammatory Diseases

Rheumatology (Oxford) 2023;63(2):298–308 doi 10.1093/rheumatology/kead448

JAKis differ in structure, which affects their inhibitory concentration for different JAKs.

This review by Taylor, et al. compares the pharmacological profiles of JAKis, including abrocitinib, baricitinib, filgotinib, peficitinib, tofacitinib, and upadacitinib.

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Cardiovascular Safety of Janus Kinase Inhibitors in Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis: Systematic Review and Network Meta-analysis

Front Pharmacol. 2023; 8(14):1237234 doi 10.3389/fphar.2023.1237234

This meta-analysis by Wei, et al. found that JAKi therapy was not associated with a higher risk of MACE than treatment with adalimumab, abatacept, or placebo. However, a higher incidence of all-cause mortality was observed with tofacitinib treatment than with adalimumab treatment.

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Differences and Similarities Between the EULAR/ASAS-EULAR and National Recommendations for Treatment of Patients with Psoriatic Arthritis and Axial Spondyloarthritis Across Europe

Lancet Reg Health Eur. 2023;33:100706 doi: 10.1016/j.lanepe.2023.100706

Comparing the alignment of European national recommendations for patients with PsA and axSpA with EULAR and ASAS-EULAR treatment recommendations found that only a minority of national treatment recommendations were completely aligned.

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Long-Term Safety and Efficacy of Ixekizumab in Patients with Axial Spondyloarthritis: 3-year Data from the COAST Program

J Rheumatol. 2023;50(8):1020–1028 doi: 10.3899/jrheum.221022

Three-year data from the ixekizumab (IXE) COAST programme provide additional evidence that patients with axSpA receiving IXE experience long-term safety, and sustained improvements in efficacy outcomes, at 3 years.

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July 2023

The 2023 Pipeline of Disease-Modifying Antirheumatic Drugs (DMARDs) in Clinical Development for Spondyloarthritis (including psoriatic arthritis): a Systematic Review of Trials

RMD Open. 2023;9(3):e003279 doi 10.1136/rmdopen-2023-003279 https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37507210/

This systematic review identified DMARDs evaluated for axSpA and PsA, distinguishing between csDMARDs, tsDMARDs, and bDMARDs. The review pinpointed twenty-six distinct targeted therapies currently in clinical development; 18 therapies for axSpA and 15 therapies for PsA.

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