Publications
View and download slide summaries of the latest original articles focusing on cytokine signalling therapies within rheumatoid arthritis. All materials produced by the CSF team are subsequently reviewed and approved by individual steering committee members.
Unincreased risk of hospitalized infection under targeted therapies versus methotrexate in elderly patients with rheumatoid arthritis: a retrospective cohort study
Arthritis Res Ther. 2022 doi: 10.1186/s13075-022-02807-9
Retrospective, longitudinal, population-based study shows that despite an overall higher incidence of hospitalised infection (HI) in both elderly and older elderly patients compared to young patients, the risks of HI in patients exposed to targeted therapy versus MTX is not significantly increased.
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Comparison of drug retention of TNF inhibitors, other biologics and JAK inhibitors in RA patients who discontinued JAK inhibitor therapy
Rheumatology (Oxford) 2022 doi: 10.1093/rheumatology/keac285
Real-world population-based study shows that a switch to a second JAKinib results in a higher drug retention, as compared to switching to a TNFi, in patients with RA who discontinue original JAKinib therapy.
Achieving pain control in early rheumatoid arthritis with baricitinib monotherapy or in combination with methotrexate versus methotrexate monotherapy
RMD Open. 2022;8(1):e001994 doi: 10.1136/rmdopen-2021-001994
Post hoc analysis of the RA-BEGIN trial finds that, over a one-year period, patients treated with baricitinib (monotherapy or in combination with methotrexate [MTX]) report greater pain relief and a more rapid attainment of clinically meaningful thresholds of pain improvement, than patients who receive MTX monotherapy.Often overlooked, when treating RA solely to a disease activity target, patient-reported pain is common in RA, even in those reaching inflammatory remission. The fact that pain per...Keywords:
Evaluation of response to 13-valent conjugated pneumococcal vaccination in patients with rheumatoid arthritis receiving upadacitinib: results from a phase 2 open-label extension study
RMD Open. 2022;8(1):e002110 doi: 10.1136/rmdopen-2021-002110
Vaccine sub-study of the BALANCE-EXTEND upadacitinib trial finds that approximately two-thirds of patients receiving upadacitinib 15 mg once-daily achieve a satisfactory humoral response to pneumococcal 13-valent conjugate (PCV-13) vaccine, despite receiving concomitant methotrexate (MTX).It is well known that a weakened immune response, comorbidities and immunosuppressant drug therapy all contribute to an increased susceptibility to infections in patients with RA. Likewise, the morbidity and mo...
Highlights of 2021
Please click the links below to go to the CSF review of each paper
I’m sure we’d all hoped that this year would be a return to normal but, in the midst of the challenges we’ve faced with COVID-19, the rheumatology community has continued to deliver excellent publications, and we’ve covered many of these on the CSF. Here are my highlights from 2021's publications: Points to Consider for the Treatment of Immune-Mediated Inflammatory Diseases With Janus Kinase Inhibitors: A Co...
Incidence and risk factors for herpes zoster in patients with rheumatoid arthritis receiving upadacitinib: a pooled analysis of six phase III clinical trials
Ann Rheum Dis. 2021. Epub ahead of print. doi: 10.1136/annrheumdis-2021-220822.
JAKinibs have been linked with an increased risk of HZ in patients with RA. To this end, Winthrop, et al. evaluated data from six Phase III clinical trials to determine the incidence of HZ in the upadacitinib (UPA)-treated patients with RA and identify potential risk factors for the development of HZ in these patients.Analysis of data provides further support for the need for continued vigilance and monitoring for signs of herpes zoster (HZ) in patients receiving UPA, particularly in Asian popul...
Efficacy and safety of filgotinib in methotrexate-naive patients with rheumatoid arthritis with poor prognostic factors: post hoc analysis of FINCH 3
RMD Open. 2021;7(2):e001621.
Post hoc analysis of the phase III FINCH study shows that filgotinib may be an alternative treatment option for patients with RA who have poor prognostic factors (PPFs), especially those not responding to standard treatment such as methotrexate (MTX).PPFs are associated with severe disease and risk for disease progression in patients with RA. Consequently, the 2019 EULAR management guidelines for RA recommend early treatment escalation for patients with PPFs who have inadequate response to first...
Upadacitinib Monotherapy Improves Patient-Reported Outcomes in Rheumatoid Arthritis: Results From SELECT-EARLY and SELECT-MONOTHERAPY
Rheumatology (Oxford). 2021;60(7):3209–21
Upadacitinib treatment results in statistically significant and clinically meaningful improvements in health-related quality of life.Strand, et al. evaluated the effect of upadacitinib monotherapy versus methotrexate (MTX) on patient-reported outcomes (PRO) in MTX-naïve and MTX-inadequate responder patients with moderately-to-severely active RA. Their research from the SELECT-EARLY and SELECT-MONOTHERAPY randomised controlled trials found that upadacitinib monotherapy resulted in clinically mean...
Effect of janus kinase inhibitors and methotrexate combination on malignancy in patients with rheumatoid arthritis: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials
Auto Immun Highlights. 2021;12(1):8.
The combination of JAK inhibitors with MTX is not associated with an increased risk of malignancy when compared to MTX alone. Although long-term studies are needed to confirm this conclusion from short-term studies. Although it is now known that patients with RA are predisposed to an increased risk of malignancy, especially malignant lymphomas, lung cancers and non-melanoma skin cancer, it remains unclear whether the combination therapy is associated with a higher risk.To this end, Solipuram, et...
Tofacitinib versus tocilizumab in the treatment of biological-naïve or previous biological-failure patients with methotrexate-refractory active rheumatoid arthritis
RMD Open. 2021;7(2):e001601.
Findings from a multicentre cohort study in Japan provide important information that is expected to aid in determining the position of tofacitinib in the treatment algorithm for RA.Mori S, et al. compared therapeutic outcomes, from real-world registries, at 12 months between tofacitinib-treated and tocilizumab-treated patients to clarify whether tofacitinib should only be considered as an option for patients who have either failed to respond to at least one bDMARD or are MTX-resistant/-intoleran...