Leflunomide effective as co-therapy in RA
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - The immune-modulating drug leflunomide is effective as co-therapy with drugs that block the inflammation-producing protein TNF in people with rheumatoid arthritis, according to a report published this month.
Rheumatoid arthritis, or RA, occurs when the immune system attacks the tissues that line the joints, leading to pain, inflammation and deformity. Rheumatoid arthritis is more common in women than in men, and often strikes people in their 30s or 40s.
In addition to its immune-modulating properties, the drug leflunomide also has anti-inflammatory activity and other studies have demonstrated its efficacy as a so-called disease-modifying antirheumatic drug (DMARD).
Dr. Axel Finckh from Geneva University Hospital, Geneva, Switzerland and colleagues compared the safety and effectiveness of different drug therapy regimens combining anti-TNF agents and leflunomide, the chemotherapy drug methotrexate, which is also used to treat RA, or other conventional DMARDs, in a large population-based cohort of rheumatoid arthritis patients.
The various combinations of DMARDs (including leflunomide) and anti-TNF agents showed no differences in their impact on the progression of joint damage, which was insignificant with all regimens. The different drug combinations also showed no differences in terms of functional disability progression, or evolution of arthritis activity over time.
The overall incidence of side effects, time to occurrence of side effects, and specific types of adverse events did not differ significantly between the therapeutic combinations, nor did the odds of discontinuing therapy.
“Taken together,” the investigators conclude, “these results suggest that leflunomide and potentially other DMARDs offer an effective and safe alternative to methotrexate as co-therapy in combination with anti-TNF agents.”
SOURCE: Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases, January 2009.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Related Posts:
HONG KONG (Reuters) - Researchers in Australia have designed a drug which appears effective in treating arthritis in mice, and they hope it can be used to treat diseases like rheumatoid arthritis and lupus in people. In an article published in Immunology and Cell Biology, the scientists said they zeroed in on a certain human receptor,
Full Post: New inhibitor drug seen for arthritis, lupus
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - In children with arthritis, the time from diagnosis to the start of treatment with methotrexate appears to be an important predictor of their response to the drug at 6 months, Dutch investigators report. “Our results suggest that earlier initiation of methotrexate treatment will lead to an increased response,” Dr. R. ten
Full Post: Kids with arthritis benefit from early treatment
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
By Julie Steenhuysen CHICAGO (Reuters) - A drug used to suppress the immune system in cancer and rheumatoid arthritis has helped extend the life of a Minnesota boy struggling with a rare and deadly form of the genetic disorder Pompe disease. A team of researchers led by Dr. Nancy Mendelsohn of Children’s Hospitals and Clinics of Minnesota
Full Post: New therapy helps boy with rare disease
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - The results of a new study suggest that patients with psoriatic arthritis, a form of rheumatoid arthritis accompanied by psoriasis, may have “subtle” cardiac conduction disturbances. Researchers point out, however, that it is not yet known if these irregularities lead to serious heart disease. “In surveying the literature, scant data were
Full Post: Abnormal ECG seen in psoriatic arthritis patients
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
LONDON (Reuters) - Joint damage suffered by people with rheumatoid arthritis may be caused by antibodies produced within the joint itself, British researchers said Tuesday in a study that may help development of new drugs. The study of joint biopsies from people with the condition which was then transplanted into mice found that tiny structures in
Full Post: Harmful enzyme may be key in rheumatoid arthritis