Initial 24-week data from a study of patients with psoriatic arthritis (PsA) show that treatment with guselkumab improved symptoms and resulted in a higher ACR20 response than placebo in patients who could not tolerate, or did not respond to, treatment with a tumor necrosis factor inhibitor (TNFi).
(Reuters Health)—Adults 50 years and older who take tumor necrosis factor inhibitors (TNFi’s) for a range of inflammatory disorders can receive effective protection from shingles with a live varicella zoster vaccine, a clinical trial suggests.1 Researchers randomized 617 participants receiving TNFi’s in a 1:1 ratio to receive either the Zostavax live varicella zoster vaccine or…
NEW YORK (Reuters Health)—Pediatric rheumatologists and nephrologists appear to differ in their treatment choices for children who have lupus nephritis (LN), with rheumatologists more likely to prescribe rituximab, results of a small survey suggest. “This study highlights the importance of collaborative effort in developing CTPs (Consensus Treatment Plans) for pediatric LN,” the authors write in…
Data from a single-center registry shines light on 20 years of trends in first-line, biologic disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drug prescriptions for patients with rheumatoid arthritis.
The use of biosimilar treatments is increasing, according to surveys conducted in 2018 and 2020 of rheumatologists from eight countries. In the two-year period, Japan had the largest increase in biosimilar prescriptions, with only 6% of surveyed rheumatologists reporting they prefer prescribing originator biologic agents.
(Reuters Health)—Patients who receive biologic infusions at home may have a higher risk of adverse events than those who receive the infusions at a health care facility, a new study suggests.1 Researchers examined administrative claims data on 57,220 adults who received a total of 752,150 biologic infusions for immune-mediated disease between 2007 and 2017. The…
Fear of injection decreased when patients with RA switched from self-administering a treatment biosimilar to etanercept in a prefilled syringe to an injector pen, according to a small observational study.
As the U.S. and other patents for branded denosumab products get closer to expiring, drug manufacturers are initiating clinical trials for more affordable, biosimilar versions of the treatment.
A posthoc analysis confirms patients with active psoriatic arthritis (PsA) taking secukinumab experience improvement in all signs and symptoms of PsA as measured by the GRAPPA-OMERACT disease activity core domains.
In a recent study, researchers designed an intervention centered on communication and led by nurses to address discontinuation rates among patients who had switched to a biosimilar. The nurses’ insight and experience reduced the nocebo effect during the intervention, which had an 84% retention rate for patients taking a biosimilar after one year.