Rationale of using diff erent biological therapies in rheumatoid arthritis

Due to ongoing developments of novel agents in the fi eld of biological pharmacotherapy, there are now more arrows available in clinicians’ quivers for the treatment of rheumatic conditions. As a consequence, however, clear treatment strategies have to be defi ned in order to guarantee a qualitatively high and individually stage-adapted, state-of-the-art regimen for aff ected patients. This review summarizes recent evidence regarding the rationale of using diff erent biological therapies to treat rheumatoid arthritis, the most common infl ammatory joint disorder after activated osteoarthritis, and draws an actual picture of a possible standardized therapeutic algorithm without claiming exclusive appropriateness.

[1]  M. Cutolo,et al.  Rheumatoid factor positivity rather than anti-CCP positivity, a lower disability and a lower number of anti-TNF agents failed are associated with response to rituximab in rheumatoid arthritis. , 2010, Rheumatology.

[2]  R. Landewé,et al.  Current evidence for the management of rheumatoid arthritis with biological disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs: a systematic literature review informing the EULAR recommendations for the management of RA , 2010, Annals of the rheumatic diseases.

[3]  D. Furst.  The risk of infections with biologic therapies for rheumatoid arthritis. , 2010, Seminars in arthritis and rheumatism.

[4]  Maurizio Cutolo,et al.  Treating rheumatoid arthritis to target: recommendations of an international task force , 2010, Annals of the rheumatic diseases.

[5]  R. Fleischmann.  Progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy following rituximab treatment in a patient with rheumatoid arthritis. , 2009, Arthritis and rheumatism.

[6]  N. Milman,et al.  Comparison of Screening Procedures for Mycobacterium tuberculosis Infection Among Patients with Inflammatory Diseases , 2009, The Journal of Rheumatology.

[7]  M. Wörnert,et al.  Addition of infliximab compared with addition of sulfasalazine and hydroxychloroquine to methotrexate in patients with early rheumatoid arthritis (Swefot trial): 1-year results of a randomised trial , 2009, The Lancet.

[8]  H. Lorenz,et al.  Aktualisiertes Therapieschema der Rheumatoiden Arthritis. Ergebnisse eines Konsensusprozesses deutscher Rheumatologen 2009 , 2009 .

[9]  Mahboob Rahman,et al.  Golimumab in patients with active rheumatoid arthritis after treatment with tumour necrosis factor α inhibitors (GO-AFTER study): a multicentre, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, phase III trial , 2009, The Lancet.

[10]  J. Singh,et al.  Anakinra for Rheumatoid Arthritis: A Systematic Review , 2009, The Journal of Rheumatology.

[11]  E. Keystone.  Recent concepts in the inhibition of radiographic progression with biologics , 2009, Current opinion in rheumatology.

[12]  X. Mariette,et al.  Abatacept therapy and safety management. , 2009, Joint, bone, spine : revue du rhumatisme.

[13]  C. Kaps,et al.  Antirheumatic drug response signatures in human chondrocytes: potential molecular targets to stimulate cartilage regeneration , 2009, Arthritis research & therapy.

[14]  M. Genovese,et al.  The 6-month safety and efficacy of abatacept in patients with rheumatoid arthritis who underwent a washout after anti-tumour necrosis factor therapy or were directly switched to abatacept: the ARRIVE trial , 2008, Annals of the rheumatic diseases.

[15]  P. Tak,et al.  Disease activity-guided rituximab therapy in rheumatoid arthritis: the effects of re-treatment in initial nonresponders versus initial responders. , 2008, Arthritis and rheumatism.

[16]  N. Miyasaka,et al.  Long-term safety and efficacy of tocilizumab, an anti-IL-6 receptor monoclonal antibody, in monotherapy, in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (the STREAM study): evidence of safety and efficacy in a 5-year extension study , 2008, Annals of the rheumatic diseases.

[17]  Kazuhiko Yamamoto,et al.  Study of active controlled tocilizumab monotherapy for rheumatoid arthritis patients with an inadequate response to methotrexate (SATORI): significant reduction in disease activity and serum vascular endothelial growth factor by IL-6 receptor inhibition therapy , 2008, Modern rheumatology.

[18]  D. Karras,et al.  Adjunctive anakinra in patients with active rheumatoid arthritis despite methotrexate, or leflunomide, or cyclosporin-A monotherapy: a 48-week, comparative, prospective study. , 2008, Rheumatology.

[19]  M. Netea,et al.  Anti-inflammatory therapy with tumour necrosis factor alpha inhibitors improves high-density lipoprotein cholesterol antioxidative capacity in rheumatoid arthritis patients , 2008, Annals of the rheumatic diseases.

[20]  J. Kremer,et al.  IL-6 receptor inhibition with tocilizumab improves treatment outcomes in patients with rheumatoid arthritis refractory to anti-tumour necrosis factor biologicals: results from a 24-week multicentre randomised placebo-controlled trial , 2008, Annals of the rheumatic diseases.

[21]  P. Kaur,et al.  Histological evaluation of liver in two rheumatoid arthritis patients with chronic hepatitis B and C treated with TNF-alpha blockade: case reports , 2008, Clinical Rheumatology.

[22]  P. Polgreen,et al.  Mycobacterial and other serious infections in patients receiving anti-tumor necrosis factor and other newly approved biologic therapies: case finding through the Emerging Infections Network. , 2008, Clinical infectious diseases : an official publication of the Infectious Diseases Society of America.

[23]  B. Zimmermann,et al.  Drug-Induced Lupus due to Anti-Tumor Necrosis Factor α Agents , 2008 .

[24]  L. Jacobsson,et al.  Anti-tumour necrosis factor therapy in rheumatoid arthritis and risk of malignant lymphomas: relative risks and time trends in the Swedish Biologics Register , 2008, Annals of the rheumatic diseases.

[25]  T. Barnetche,et al.  Anti-nuclear antibodies, anti-DNA and C4 complement evolution in rheumatoid arthritis and ankylosing spondylitis treated with TNF-alpha blockers. , 2008, Clinical and experimental rheumatology.

[26]  M. Dougados,et al.  Rituximab inhibits structural joint damage in patients with rheumatoid arthritis with an inadequate response to tumour necrosis factor inhibitor therapies , 2008, Annals of the rheumatic diseases.

[27]  H. Genant,et al.  Results of a two-year followup study of patients with rheumatoid arthritis who received a combination of abatacept and methotrexate. , 2008, Arthritis and rheumatism.

[28]  J. Smolen,et al.  Effect of interleukin-6 receptor inhibition with tocilizumab in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (OPTION study): a double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomised trial , 2008, The Lancet.

[29]  Matthias Schneider,et al.  Does tumor necrosis factor alpha inhibition promote or prevent heart failure in patients with rheumatoid arthritis? , 2008, Arthritis and rheumatism.

[30]  C. Korkmaz,et al.  Short-term course of chronic hepatitis B and C under treatment with etanercept associated with different disease modifying antirheumatic drugs without antiviral prophylaxis. , 2008, The Journal of rheumatology.

[31]  M. Dougados,et al.  Risk of serious infections during rituximab, abatacept and anakinra treatments for rheumatoid arthritis: meta-analyses of randomised placebo-controlled trials , 2008, Annals of the rheumatic diseases.

[32]  M. Dougados,et al.  Safety and efficacy of additional courses of rituximab in patients with active rheumatoid arthritis: an open-label extension analysis. , 2007, Arthritis and rheumatism.

[33]  F. Dubas,et al.  Neuropathie démyélinisante au cours d’un traitement par anti-TNF alpha et revue de la littérature , 2007 .

[34]  M. Dougados,et al.  Efficacy and safety of abatacept or infliximab vs placebo in ATTEST: a phase III, multi-centre, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled study in patients with rheumatoid arthritis and an inadequate response to methotrexate , 2007, Annals of the rheumatic diseases.

[35]  A. Zwinderman,et al.  Synovial tissue response to rituximab: mechanism of action and identification of biomarkers of response , 2007, Annals of the rheumatic diseases.

[36]  P. Emery,et al.  Development of psoriasis after B cell depletion with rituximab. , 2007, Arthritis and rheumatism.

[37]  J. Gómez-Reino,et al.  Risk of tuberculosis in patients treated with tumor necrosis factor antagonists due to incomplete prevention of reactivation of latent infection. , 2007, Arthritis and rheumatism.

[38]  B. Baethge,et al.  Coccidioidomycosis pneumonia in a nonendemic area associated with infliximab. , 2007, Southern medical journal.

[39]  Saskia le Cessie,et al.  A prediction rule for disease outcome in patients with recent-onset undifferentiated arthritis: how to guide individual treatment decisions. , 2007, Arthritis and rheumatism.

[40]  M. Broder,et al.  Tumor necrosis factor antagonists: different kinetics and/or mechanisms of action may explain differences in the risk for developing granulomatous infection. , 2006, Seminars in arthritis and rheumatism.

[41]  Jan‐Åke Nilsson,et al.  Influenza vaccination as model for testing immune modulation induced by anti-TNF and methotrexate therapy in rheumatoid arthritis patients. , 2006, Rheumatology.

[42]  F. Breedveld,et al.  Updated consensus statement on biological agents for the treatment of rheumatic diseases, 2011 , 2006, Annals of the rheumatic diseases.

[43]  Stanley B. Cohen,et al.  Rituximab for rheumatoid arthritis refractory to anti-tumor necrosis factor therapy: Results of a multicenter, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, phase III trial evaluating primary efficacy and safety at twenty-four weeks. , 2006, Arthritis and rheumatism.

[44]  M. Weinblatt,et al.  Safety of the selective costimulation modulator abatacept in rheumatoid arthritis patients receiving background biologic and nonbiologic disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs: A one-year randomized, placebo-controlled study. , 2006, Arthritis and rheumatism.

[45]  J. Kremer,et al.  Selective costimulation modulation using abatacept in patients with active rheumatoid arthritis while receiving etanercept: a randomised clinical trial , 2006, Annals of the rheumatic diseases.

[46]  H. Genant,et al.  Effects of Abatacept in Patients with Methotrexate-Resistant Active Rheumatoid Arthritis , 2006, Annals of Internal Medicine.

[47]  P. Emery,et al.  The efficacy and safety of rituximab in patients with active rheumatoid arthritis despite methotrexate treatment: results of a phase IIB randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, dose-ranging trial. , 2006, Arthritis and rheumatism.

[48]  J. Tuscano,et al.  Safety and efficacy of rituximab in patients with rheumatoid arthritis refractory to disease modifying antirheumatic drugs and anti-tumor necrosis factor-alpha treatment. , 2005, The Journal of rheumatology.

[49]  M. Dougados,et al.  Abatacept for rheumatoid arthritis refractory to tumor necrosis factor alpha inhibition. , 2005, The New England journal of medicine.

[50]  H. Olsson,et al.  Tumour necrosis factor blockers do not increase overall tumour risk in patients with rheumatoid arthritis, but may be associated with an increased risk of lymphomas , 2005, Annals of the rheumatic diseases.

[51]  I. Iqbal,et al.  Considerations with the use of biological therapy in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis , 2004, Expert opinion on drug safety.

[52]  I. Iqbal,et al.  Anakinra: an inhibitor of IL-1 for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis , 2004, Expert opinion on biological therapy.

[53]  P. Emery,et al.  Efficacy of B-cell-targeted therapy with rituximab in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. , 2004, The New England journal of medicine.

[54]  Harry K Genant,et al.  Effects of anakinra monotherapy on joint damage in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Extension of a 24-week randomized, placebo-controlled trial. , 2004, The Journal of rheumatology.

[55]  R S Wallis,et al.  Granulomatous infectious diseases associated with tumor necrosis factor antagonists. , 2004, Clinical infectious diseases : an official publication of the Infectious Diseases Society of America.

[56]  M. Genovese,et al.  Combination therapy with etanercept and anakinra in the treatment of patients with rheumatoid arthritis who have been treated unsuccessfully with methotrexate. , 2004, Arthritis and rheumatism.

[57]  M. Dougados,et al.  Efficacy and safety of adalimumab as monotherapy in patients with rheumatoid arthritis for whom previous disease modifying antirheumatic drug treatment has failed , 2004, Annals of the rheumatic diseases.

[58]  M. Braun,et al.  Listeria monocytogenes infection as a complication of treatment with tumor necrosis factor alpha-neutralizing agents. , 2003, Arthritis and rheumatism.

[59]  M. Braun,et al.  Life-threatening histoplasmosis complicating immunotherapy with tumor necrosis factor alpha antagonists infliximab and etanercept. , 2002, Arthritis and rheumatism.

[60]  G. Rodnan,et al.  The early history of antirheumatic drugs. , 1970, Arthritis and rheumatism.

[61]  P. Sarzi-Puttini,et al.  Serious infections during anti-TNFalpha treatment in rheumatoid arthritis patients. , 2009, Autoimmunity reviews.

[62]  X. Mariette,et al.  Exposition to anti-TNF drugs during pregnancy: outcome of 15 cases and review of the literature. , 2009, Joint, bone, spine : revue du rhumatisme.

[63]  M. Dougados,et al.  Rituximab therapy in rheumatoid arthritis in daily practice. , 2008, The Journal of rheumatology.

[64]  L. Calabrese,et al.  The effects of rituximab on immunocompetency in patients with autoimmune disease. , 2008, Arthritis and rheumatism.

[65]  F. Breedveld,et al.  The PREMIER study: A multicenter, randomized, double-blind clinical trial of combination therapy with adalimumab plus methotrexate versus methotrexate alone or adalimumab alone in patients with early, aggressive rheumatoid arthritis who had not had previous methotrexate treatment. , 2006, Arthritis and rheumatism.

[66]  Maarten Boers,et al.  Progression of radiologic damage in patients with rheumatoid arthritis in clinical remission. , 2004, Arthritis and rheumatism.