Search results for: methotrexate

Certolizumab Pegol Combination Therapy Better than Methotrexate Monotherapy in DMARD-Naive Patients with RA

Michele B. Kaufman, PharmD, BCGP | June 29, 2016

A recent study found that certolizumab pegol plus methotrexate is effective in achieving sustained remission and low disease activity in patients with early active RA…

Triple Therapy with Methotrexate Effective, Cheaper in RA

Larry Hand | April 27, 2016

NEW YORK (Reuters Health)—The combination of methotrexate, sulphasalazine and hydroxychloroquine is similar in effect as methotrexate plus biologic therapy for patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), according to a new network meta-analysis. “Thus, for most patients, this low-cost combination of medications should probably be tried before moving onto biologic therapy, either as initial treatment or as…

Cholesterol Levels in Patients with RA Starting Methotrexate

Arthritis & Rheumatology | February 25, 2016

Although research regarding the increased cardiovascular (CV) morbidity and mortality in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) has burgeoned in recent years, the need remains for a better understanding of the effects of widely used DMARDs on CV risk and risk factors in RA patients. These authors set out to evaluate the long-term changes in cholesterol levels in patients with early RA. Decreases in RA disease activity over long-term follow-up were associated with increases in cholesterol levels in patients with early RA treated with either biologic or nonbiologic therapies…

Rheumatology Drug Updates: Biosimilars Seek Regulatory Approval in the U.S., Europe; Methotrexate Underused

Michele B. Kaufman, PharmD, BCGP | February 16, 2016

Biosimilars Receive Positive News On Nov. 19, 2015, the European Medicines Agency’s (EMA) Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) recommended granting marketing authorization for SB4, an etanercept biosimilar product that will be called Benepali.1 If approved, Benepali can be used to treat rheumatoid arthritis (RA), psoriatic arthritis (PsA), axial spondyloarthritis and plaque psoriasis….

Tocilizumab Plus Methotrexate Faster Fix in Some with RA

David Douglas | February 1, 2016

NEW YORK (Reuters Health)—In rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients with an inadequate response to methotrexate, adding tocilizumab to the regimen is more effective than simply switching to tocilizumab, according to Japanese researchers. Dr. Tsutomu Takeuchi told Reuters Health by email that the approach “more rapidly suppressed inflammation than tocilizumab switched from methotrexate, leading to superior clinical…

Methotrexate for Ulcerative Colitis Yields Mixed Results

Larry Hand | December 27, 2015

NEW YORK (Reuters Health)—Parenteral methotrexate was no better than placebo for achieving steroid-free remission of ulcerative colitis (UC) in the METEOR trial. But the drug should not be abandoned in all UC patients, researchers say. “Although METEOR failed to reach its primary endpoint, an important secondary endpoint was met. Our study suggests that methotrexate should…

Researchers Find Rheumatologists Are Prescribing Methotrexate Less Often to Treat RA

Richard Quinn | December 8, 2015

An analysis by former ACR President James O’Dell, MD, and colleagues shows that rheumatologists may be moving too quickly from methotrexate therapy to biologics when treating patients with RA…

Does Methotrexate Increase Skin Cancer Risk?

Lara C. Pullen, PhD | November 16, 2015

A recent study connects the use of immunosuppressant and biologic agents to an increased risk of nonmelanoma skin cancer in patients being treated for RA and IBD…

Higher Tocilizumab Dose Plus Methotrexate Best for Early RA

Reuters Staff | November 14, 2015

NEW YORK (Reuters Health)—Tocilizumab improves remission rates and slows disease progression in patients with early rheumatoid arthritis (RA), a new randomized controlled trial demonstrates. Tocilizumab was effective both on its own and when combined with methotrexate, Dr. Gerd R. Burmester of Charite Medical University of Berlin and his colleagues found. Tocilizumab, an interleukin-6 (IL-6) blocker,…

Methotrexate Increases Risk of Recurrent Nonmelanoma Skin Cancer

Will Boggs, MD | November 4, 2015

NEW YORK (Reuters Health)—Methotrexate appears to increase the risk of recurrent nonmelanoma skin cancer (NMSC) in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), according to a retrospective study. “We have known for some time that several of the immunosuppressive agents used to treat RA and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) are also associated with an increased risk of…