Importance of Obtaining Remission for Work Productivity and Activity of Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis

2017 ◽  
Vol 44 (8) ◽  
pp. 1112-1117 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dam Kim ◽  
Yuko Kaneko ◽  
Tsutomu Takeuchi

Objective.To identify the factors relevant to work and activity impairment in patients with rheumatoid arthritis.Methods.In total, 1274 consecutive patients were included. Work and activity impairment were measured by the Work Productivity and Activity Impairment questionnaire, and related clinical factors were examined.Results.Work and activity impairment was reported by 67.4% of the patients. Multivariable linear regression analyses revealed pain and non-remission to be associated with activity impairment and presenteeism. Patients in remission had significantly less activity impairment and presenteeism than those with low disease activity.Conclusion.Remission achievement is essential for ensuring work performance and activity.

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
pp. 1759720X2094908
Author(s):  
Maria G. Tektonidou ◽  
Gkikas Katsifis ◽  
Athanasios Georgountzos ◽  
Athina Theodoridou ◽  
Eftychia-Maria Koukli ◽  
...  

Objective: Our aim was to evaluate the effect of adalimumab on work productivity measures, overall activity impairment, and sleep quality in patients with active moderate to severe rheumatoid arthritis (RA), psoriatic arthritis (PsA), or ankylosing spondylitis (AS) treated in routine care settings in Greece and determine factors associated with work impairment and sleep disturbance. Methods: Patients with active moderate to severe RA ( n = 184), PsA ( n = 166), and AS ( n = 150) were enrolled in this 24-month, prospective, observational study at 80 hospital outpatient clinics and private practices throughout Greece. Patients received adalimumab alone or in combination with standard antirheumatic therapies according to routine care. Work productivity and sleep were assessed through two patient-reported outcome measures: the Work Productivity and Activity Impairment–General Health questionnaire and the Medical Outcomes Study Sleep Scale (MOS-SS). Pearson correlation coefficients were estimated to assess the association of work impairment and sleep disturbances with disease activity scores. Results: In the overall population, adalimumab significantly lowered absenteeism [mean (95% confidence interval) reduction, 18.9% (13.3–24.5%); n = 100]; presenteeism [40.0% (33.8–46.3%); n = 98], overall work productivity impairment [46.8% (40.4–53.2%); n = 94], activity impairment [47.0% (44.3–49.6); n = 421], and the MOS-SS sleep problems index [31.6 (29.5–34.1); n = 421] after 24-month treatment ( p < 0.001). Significant improvements were also noted across the RA, PsA, and AS subpopulations ( p < 0.05). Improvements in overall work impairment and sleep disturbance positively correlated with improvements in disease activity measures. Conclusion: Adalimumab improves work productivity and sleep problems while lowering disease activity in patients with moderate to severe RA, PsA, and AS managed in real-world settings.


2021 ◽  
Vol 23 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yoshiya Tanaka ◽  
Tsutomu Takeuchi ◽  
Hiroyuki Izutsu ◽  
Yuichiro Kaneko ◽  
Daisuke Kato ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Peficitinib (ASP015K), a novel oral Janus kinase inhibitor, has demonstrated efficacy and safety in the treatment of patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). This study evaluated the effect of peficitinib on patient- and physician-reported outcomes in Asian patients with RA and an inadequate response to prior disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs). Methods Patients from two randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind, phase 3 trials (RAJ3 and RAJ4) received once-daily peficitinib 100 mg, peficitinib 150 mg, or placebo, alone or in combination with DMARDs (RAJ3), or in combination with methotrexate (RAJ4). Mean changes in Work Productivity and Activity Impairment (WPAI) questionnaire domain scores from baseline, and percentages of patients achieving minimal clinically important differences (MCIDs) for patient- and physician-reported outcomes (WPAI, Health Assessment Questionnaire – Disability Index [HAQ-DI], and Subject’s Global Assessment of Pain [SGAP]), and Physician’s Global Assessment of disease activity (PGA) were evaluated at weeks 4, 8, 12, and 12/early termination (ET). Results Data from 1025 patients were analyzed. At week 12/ET in both studies, patients who received peficitinib 100 mg or 150 mg reported significantly improved WPAI domain scores from baseline (except for absenteeism in RAJ4) compared with placebo (both doses, p<0.05). A higher proportion of peficitinib- versus placebo-treated patients achieved MCID in WPAI, HAQ-DI, SGAP, and PGA in studies RAJ3 and RAJ4. Significant differences with peficitinib versus placebo were evident in both studies as early as week 4 in HAQ-DI (peficitinib 150 mg only), SGAP, and PGA, and week 8 in WPAI loss of work productivity and daily activity impairment. At week 12/ET, significantly higher proportions of patients receiving peficitinib versus placebo achieved MCID in HAQ-DI, SGAP, PGA, and WPAI domains of presenteeism (RAJ3 only), loss of work productivity (RAJ3 only), and daily activity impairment (p<0.05 for all comparisons). Conclusions Peficitinib 100 mg or 150 mg administered daily over 12 weeks resulted in clinically meaningful improvements in outcomes that are important to RA patients, including pain, physical function, and work productivity and activity. These observations were reinforced through similar improvements in physicians’ rating of disease activity. Trial registration RAJ3: ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT02308163, registered 4 December 2014. RAJ4: ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT02305849, registered 3 December 2014.


2016 ◽  
Vol 75 (Suppl 2) ◽  
pp. 454.1-454
Author(s):  
G. Akdemir ◽  
I.M. Markusse ◽  
A.A. Schouffoer ◽  
P.B. de Sonnaville ◽  
B.A. Grillet ◽  
...  

2020 ◽  
Vol 79 (Suppl 1) ◽  
pp. 645.1-645
Author(s):  
K. Katayama ◽  
K. Yujiro ◽  
T. Okubo ◽  
R. Fukai ◽  
T. Sato ◽  
...  

Background:Many studies have been reported to reduce/discontinue Biologics in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). In contrast, study for tapering methotrexate (MTX) has been limited (1,2).Objectives:We prospectively examined whether bone destruction will progress at 48 weeks after tapering or discontinuing MTX (UMIN000028875).Methods:The subjects were RA patients who have maintained low disease activity or lower for 24 weeks or more in DAS28-CRP after MTX administration. Patients having PDUS Grade 2 or 3 per site by bilateral hand ultrasonography (26 area) were excluded in this study owing to risk for joint destruction. The joint destruction was evaluated by the joint X-ray evaluation by modified total Sharp scoring (mTSS) at 1 year after the start of tapering MTX. Evaluation of clinical disease activities, severe adverse events, the continuation rate during MTX tapering were also evaluated. According to tapering response, prognostic factor for good response for tapering, joint destruction was determined. Predictors for successful tapering MTX and progression of bone destruction were determined. Statistical analysis was performed by t-test or Wilcoxon rank sum test using SAS .13.2 software.Results:The subjects were 79 (16 males, 63 females). Age average 60.9 years, disease duration 4 years 4 months, MTX dose 8.43 mg / w, DAS28-CRP 1.52, DMARDs (24.3%), ACPA 192.7 U / ml (70.5%), RF 55.6 IU / ml (65.4%).MTX was tapered from an average of 8.43 mg / w before study to 5.46 mg / w one year later. In the treatment evaluation, DAS28-CRP increased from 1.52 to 1.84. 89.7% of subjects did not progress joint damage. Other disease activities significantly increased (Table 1). The one-year continuation rate was 78.2%. Since tapering effects were varied widely, we divided patients into three groups; Flared group (N=14, initial MTX dose 8.71mg/w, final MTX dose 8.42mg/w), Low response group (N=31, final MTX reduction rate< 50%, initial MTX dose 8.93mg/w, final MTX dose 6.22mg/w), High response group (N=34, final MTX reduction rate≥ 50%, initial MTX dose 8.5mg/w, final MTX dose 3.15mg/w)(Table 2).Higher RF value at baseline and higher MTX dose at 3M, 6M were predictors of whether a subject was in Low response group or High Response group. Higher RF value and mTSS at baseline and higher MTX dose at 6M were predictors whether a subject was in Flared group or High response group. Lower age was predictor of whether a subject was in Flared group or Low responder group. Finally, mean ΔmTSS /y in Flared group (0.36) was not significantly higher than in low response group (0.07) and in high response group (0.01).Table 1Table 2.Predictors for successful tapering MTX and progression of bone destructionConclusion:Patients with MTX-administered low disease activity and finger joint echo PDUS grade 1 satisfy almost no joint destruction even after MTX reduction. For tapering, predictors may be helpful for maintaining patient’s satisfaction.References:[1]Baker KF, Skelton AJ, Lendrem DW et al. Predicting drug-free remission in rheumatoid arthritis: A prospective interventional cohort study. J. Autoimmunity. 2019;105: 102298.[2]Lillegraven S, Sundlisater N, Aga A et al. Tapering of Conventional Synthetic Disease Modifying Anti-Rheumatic Drugs in Rheumatoid Arthritis Patients in Sustained Remission: Results from a Randomized Controlled Trial. American College of Rheumatology. 2019; Abstract L08.Disclosure of Interests:None declared


Rheumatology ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rugina I Neuman ◽  
Hieronymus T W Smeele ◽  
A H Jan Danser ◽  
Radboud J E M Dolhain ◽  
Willy Visser

Abstract Objectives An elevated sFlt-1/PlGF-ratio has been validated as a significant predictor of preeclampsia, but has not been established in women with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). We explored whether the sFlt-1/PlGF-ratio could be altered due to disease activity in RA, and could be applied in this population to predict preeclampsia. Since sulfasalazine has been suggested to improve the angiogenic imbalance in preeclampsia, we also aimed to examine whether sulfasalazine could affect sFlt-1 or PlGF levels. Methods Making use of a nationwide, observational, prospective cohort study on pregnant women with RA, sFlt-1 and PlGF were measured in the third trimester. A total of 221 women, aged 21–42 years, were included, with a median gestational age of 30 + 3 weeks. Results No differences in sFlt-1 or PlGF were observed between women with high, intermediate or low disease activity (p= 0.07 and p= 0.41), whereas sFlt-1 and PlGF did not correlate with DAS28-CRP score (r=-0.01 and r=-0.05, respectively). Four (2%) women with a sFlt-1/PlGF-ratio ≤38 developed preeclampsia in comparison to three (43%) women with a ratio &gt; 38, corresponding to a negative predictive value of 98.1%. Sulfasalazine users (n = 57) did not show altered levels of sFlt-1 or PlGF in comparison to non-sulfasalazine users (n = 164, p= 0.91 and p= 0.11). Conclusion Our study shows that in pregnant women with RA, the sFlt-1/PlGF-ratio is not altered due to disease activity and a cut-off ≤38 can be used to exclude preeclampsia. Additionally, sulfasalazine use did not affect sFlt-1 or PlGF levels in this population.


2021 ◽  
Vol 23 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sang Youn Jung ◽  
Jung Hee Koh ◽  
Ki-Jo Kim ◽  
Yong-Wook Park ◽  
Hyung-In Yang ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Tapering or stopping biological disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs has been proposed for patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) in remission, but it frequently results in high rates of recurrence. This study evaluates the efficacy and safety of tacrolimus (TAC) as maintenance therapy in patients with established RA in remission after receiving combination therapy with tumor necrosis factor inhibitor (TNFi) and methotrexate (MTX). Methods This 24-week, prospective, open-label trial included patients who received TNFi and MTX at stable doses for ≥24 weeks and had low disease activity (LDA), measured by Disease Activity Score-28 for ≥12 weeks. Patients selected one of two arms: maintenance (TNFi plus MTX) or switched (TAC plus MTX). The primary outcome was the difference in the proportion of patients maintaining LDA at week 24, which was assessed using a logistic regression model. Adverse events were monitored throughout the study period. Results In efficacy analysis, 80 and 34 patients were included in the maintenance and switched arms, respectively. At week 24, LDA was maintained in 99% and 91% of patients in the maintenance and switched arms, respectively (odds ratio, 0.14; 95% confidence interval, 0.01–1.59). Drug-related adverse effects tended to be more common in the switched arm than in the maintenance arm (20.9% versus 7.1%, respectively) but were well-tolerated. Conclusion This controlled study tested a novel treatment strategy of switching from TNFi to TAC in RA patients with sustained LDA, and the findings suggested that TNFi can be replaced with TAC in most patients without the patients experiencing flare-ups for at least 24 weeks. Trial registration Korea CDC CRIS, KCT0005868. Registered 4 February 2021—retrospectively registered


2021 ◽  
Vol 23 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yoshinari Matsumoto ◽  
Nitin Shivappa ◽  
Yuko Sugioka ◽  
Masahiro Tada ◽  
Tadashi Okano ◽  
...  

Abstract Background The dietary inflammatory index (DII®), a quantitative measure of the inflammatory potential of daily food and nutrient intake, and associations between a variety of health outcomes have been reported. However, the association between DII score and disease activity of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is unclear. Therefore, this study was designed to test whether higher DII score contributes to disease activity and as a corollary, whether reducing DII score helps to achieve or maintain low disease activity or remission in patients with RA. Methods We performed a cross-sectional and longitudinal analysis using 6 years of data (from 2011 to 2017) in TOMORROW, a cohort study consisting of 208 RA patients and 205 gender- and age-matched controls started in 2010. Disease activity of RA patients was assessed annually using DAS28-ESR (disease activity score 28 joints and the erythrocyte sedimentation rate) as a composite measure based on arthritic symptoms in 28 joints plus global health assessment and ESR. Dietary data were collected in 2011 and 2017 using the brief-type self-administered diet history questionnaire (BDHQ). Energy-adjusted DII (E-DII™) score was calculated using 26 nutrients derived from the BDHQ. Data were analyzed with two-group comparisons, correlation analysis, and multivariable logistic regression analysis. Results One hundred and seventy-seven RA patients and 183 controls, for whom clinical and dietary survey data were available, were analyzed. RA patients had significantly higher E-DII (pro-inflammatory) score compared to controls both in 2011 and 2017 (p < 0.05). In RA patients, E-DII score was not a factor associated with significant change in disease activity. However, anti-inflammatory change in E-DII score was associated maintaining low disease activity (DAS28-ESR ≤ 3.2) or less for 6 years (OR 3.46, 95% CI 0.33–8.98, p = 0.011). Conclusions The diets of RA patients had a higher inflammatory potential than controls. Although E-DII score was not a factor associated with significant disease activity change, anti-inflammatory change in E-DII score appeared to be associated with maintaining low disease activity in patients with RA. Trial registration UMIN Clinical Trials Registry, UMIN000003876. Registered 7 Aug 2010—retrospectively registered.


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