Efficacy and safety of anti-tumour necrosis factor in elderly patients with rheumatoid arthritis: An observational study
Filippini M et al. – Study shows that anti-TNFα treatment reduced disease activity and led to functional improvement in both elderly and younger patients, although the baseline difference in HAQ remained statistically significant at the end of the follow-up. The elderly patients experienced more infective events.Methods- A comparison of the efficacy and safety of anti-TNF agents in elderly (aged ≥65 yrs) and younger pts (aged 18–65 yrs) with active RA
- 1,114 RA pts, followed-up for >6 mo, were divided into 2 cohorts on the basis of their age to evaluate 3-yr outcomes and treatment discontinuations
- Drug effectiveness was assessed by DAS28 and EULAR response, functional status (HAQ) and serological parameters (ESR) at baseline and during therapy
- Safety was evaluated on the basis of drug discontinuation rates
Results- At baseline, the elderly pts showed greater disease activity and loss of joint function
- During therapy, clinical and laboratory parameters improved in both groups w/o any difference between them
- Difference in HAQ remained after 36 mo of treatment
- Anti-TNFα therapy was discontinued by 42% elderly and 36.6% of younger pts because of loss of efficacy, severe adverse events or other reasons
- Number of AEs was higher in the elderly patients
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