Biologic therapy directed at B-cells could turn out be more effective in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, a chronic inflammatory disease arising out of an auto immune disorder.
An international study conducted on Rituximab, a form of biologic therapy for treatment of rheumatoid arthritis has been found to achieve remission in rheumatoid arthritis patients who exhibit resistance to conventional DMARDs. The effect, independent of steroid administration is seen despite the variability in the dosage of the drug.Drugs aimed at suppressing inflammation-provoking cytokines--specifically those linked to T-cells--have improved the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Still, the frequency of remission achieved by these biologic agents remains below 50 percent. To increase the success rate of biologic therapy for RA patients, researchers have honed in on a new target: the B cell.
Rituximab, a biologic agent that selectively depletes B cells, has been successfully used to treat non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. It has also been shown to improve disease symptoms for RA patients, when injected at aggressive levels for a two-week period. To investigate this biologic's potential long-term therapeutic value, an international team of scientists set out to compare the effectiveness and safety of different rituximab doses over a 24-week period, with and without steroids. Their study focused on 465 RA patients with moderate to severe symptoms resistant to disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs), including other biologics. The results, featured in the May 2006 issue of Arthritis & Rheumatism.
Drawn from outpatient populations in California, Texas, Arizona, Switzerland, Sweden, Poland, and England, the subjects were randomly divided into nine treatment groups. Three groups received a 1,000-mg. dose of rituximab--two infusions two weeks apart--with either intravenous steroid, oral steroid, or placebo. Three groups received a 500 mg. dose of rituximab--two infusions two weeks apart--with either intravenous steroid, oral steroid, or placebo. Three groups received a placebo with either intravenous steroid, oral steroid, or another placebo. All subjects received the DMARD methotrexate (MXT). All subjects were evaluated every four weeks for changes in the Disease Active Score (DAS), a 28-joint assessment for swelling and tenderness, as well as for overall disease improvement, with the goal of meeting the American College of Rheumatology (ACR) 20 percent improvement criteria.
At the 24-week culmination, 54 percent of the subjects in three rituximab 1,000 mg. X 2 groups and 55 percent of the subjects in the three rituximab 500 mg. X 2 groups had achieved the desired ACR20 response, compared with 28 percent of the subjects in the three placebo groups. The different dosages of rituximab did not have a statistically significant impact on the odds of achieving an ACR20 response, and analyses of the proportions of patients who achieved higher ACR improvement scores--50 percent and 70 percent--showed similar patterns. Changes in DAS28 at week 24 reflected the ACR response findings, as did the subjects reports of relief from joint pain and stiffness. What's more, subjects in the rituximab groups showed gains toward disease remission earlier in the course of treatment than subjects in the placebo group.
Steroids, whether received intravenously or orally, showed no significant correlation with disease improvement scores among the rituximab groups. Intravenous steroid, however, showed a positive correlation to improved tolerability during the first rituximab infusion in both dosage groups. Overall, adverse events associated with rituximab were mild and easily managed. Headache was the most common complaint.
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