Abatacept and methotrexate may work better at slowing the development of early-stage rheumatoid arthritis\u00a0than methotrexate alone.<\/p>\n
INTRODUCTION<\/strong><\/p>\n Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a disease that causes inflamed (swollen) joints. The inflammation may eventually\u00a0damage the cartilage and bone. Many doctors believe that there is a narrow \u2019window of opportunity\u2019 to stop\u00a0the progress of the disease when it has just started. It\u2019s much harder to treat the disease when you have had it WHAT DID THE RESEARCHERS HOPE TO FIND?<\/strong><\/p>\n The study was paid for by Bristol-Myers Squibb, the maker of abatacept. The researchers wanted to find out\u00a0whether abatacept \u2013 either alone or combined with methotrexate \u2013 worked better than methotrexate at improving\u00a0people\u2019s signs and symptoms of RA. In particular, they wanted to compare how many people went into WHO WAS STUDIED?<\/strong><\/p>\n The 351 people who took part in the study were adults (18 years and older) with early RA. None of the participants\u00a0had reported having signs or symptoms of the disease for more than two years. HOW WAS THE STUDY CONDUCTED?<\/strong><\/p>\n The researchers randomly split the people into three groups. The first group was given abatacept and methotrexate\u00a0(119 people). The second group was given abatacept on its own (116 people). And the third group was\u00a0given methotrexate on its own (116 people). WHAT DOES THE NEW STUDY SAY?<\/strong><\/p>\n The study found that taking abatacept and methotrexate together worked better than taking methotrexate\u00a0alone. After a year of treatment, around 60 in every 100 people taking both drugs were in remission. This compared\u00a0with about 45 in every 100 people taking methotrexate alone.<\/p>\n Abatacept alone and methotrexate alone were about as effective as each other. The study did not find any\u00a0real differences in side effects between the two drugs. About 80 in 100 people in either group had side effects\u00a0of some kind. These were not usually serious.<\/p>\n Six months after people stopped taking their RA medicines, nearly 15 in 100 of those who had taken abatacept\u00a0plus methotrexate were still in remission. This compared with about 8 in 100 of those in the methotrexate\u00a0group.<\/p>\n HOW RELIABLE ARE THE FINDINGS?<\/strong><\/p>\n This was a type of study called a randomised controlled trial or RCT. This is the best way for testing how well\u00a0treatments work.\u00a0However, these findings show only what happened to the people six months after they stopped taking their\u00a0treatments. So we do not know whether their RA continued to be in remission after that point.<\/p>\n WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR ME?<\/strong><\/p>\n Different countries may have different criteria for use of abatacept. In general, abatacept is only recommended\u00a0after failing \u00a0conventional treatment, at least methotrexate . This study supports the use of abatacept in combination\u00a0with methotrexate, but also indicates that stopping therapy even when you are in remission is associated\u00a0with a rather high risk of relapse. If you want to know more about this treatment, you can talk to your rheumatologist Disclaimer<\/strong>: This is a summary of a scientific article written by a medical professional (\u201cthe Original Article\u201d). The Summary is written to assist non medically trained readers to understand general points of the Original Article. \u00a0It should not be relied on in any way whatsoever<\/span>, (which also means the Summary is not medical advice), and is simply supplied to aid a lay understanding of general points of the Original Article. It is supplied \u201cas is\u201d without any warranty. You should note that the Original Article (and Summary) may not be accurate as errors can occur and also may be out of date as medical science is constantly changing. \u00a0It is very important that readers not rely on the content in the Summary and consult their medical professionals for all aspects of their health care. Do not use this Summary as medical advice even if the Summary is supplied to the reader by a medical professional.<\/strong> Date summary prepared: January 2015<\/p>\n Summary based on research article published on:\u00a03 November 2014<\/p>\n From:\u00a0Emery, P. et al<\/em>.\u00a0Evaluating drug-free remission with abatacept in early rheumatoid arthritis: results from the phase 3b, multicentre, randomised, active-controlled AVERT study of 24\u2005months, with a 12-month, double-blind treatment period.\u00a0Ann Rheum Dis <\/em>2015;74:19-26 doi:10.1136\/annrheumdis-2014-206106<\/a><\/p>\n Copyright \u00a9 2015 BMJ Publishing Group Ltd & European League Against Rheumatism. Medical professionals may print copies for their and their patients and students non commercial use. Other individuals may print a single copy for their personal, non commercial use. For other uses please contact our Rights and Licensing<\/a> Team.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Abatacept and methotrexate may work better at slowing the development of early-stage rheumatoid arthritis\u00a0than methotrexate alone. INTRODUCTION Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a disease that causes inflamed (swollen) joints. The inflammation may eventually\u00a0damage the cartilage and bone. Many doctors believe that there is a narrow \u2019window of opportunity\u2019 to stop\u00a0the progress of the disease when it […]<\/p>\n
\nfor a while and the joints have been damaged.<\/p>\n
\nDoctors prescribe disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs) to slow the development of RA and its\u00a0effects on the joints. There are two types: conventional DMARDs and biological DMARDs. Biological\u00a0DMARDs are a newer type of drug.
\nThis research compared the effects of a conventional DMARD, methotrexate, with a newer biological drug,\u00a0abatacept, on their ability to slow down the development of RA in people whose disease is still at an early\u00a0stage.<\/p>\n
\nremission while they were taking the medicines \u2013 and how many people continued to be in remission six\u00a0months after they stopped taking them. (\u2018Remission\u2019 means that a person has few, if any, signs or symptoms of\u00a0the disease.)<\/p>\n
\nThe people were selected from a number of centres in North and South America and Europe.<\/p>\n
\nAfter a year of treatment, the researchers looked at the people\u2019s \u2018disease activity score\u2019 \u2013 a standard measure\u00a0of how bad someone\u2019s RA is. If people had a low score at this point, they stopped taking their RA medicines.\u00a0The researchers then monitored them to see if their RA symptoms came back.<\/p>\n
\nor rheumatology nurse specialist.<\/p>\n
\nPlease view our full Website Terms and Conditions<\/a>.<\/p>\n