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. Selective costimulation modulation using abatacept in patients with active rheumatoid arthritis while receiving etanercept: a randomised clinical trial. Abatacept for rheumatoid arthritis refractory to tumor necrosis factor alpha inhibition. Effects of abatacept in patients with methotrexate-resistant active rheumatoid arthritis: a randomized trial. 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. Therapeutic effect of the combination of etanercept and methotrexate compared with each treatment alone in patients with rheumatoid arthritis: double-blind randomised controlled trial. Comparison of azathioprine, methotrexate, and the combination of both in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis. A controlled clinical trial.
To assess the safety of abatacept, a selective costimulation modulator, in patients with active rheumatoid arthritis (RA) who had been receiving > or =1 traditional nonbiologic and/or biologic disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs) approved for the treatment of RA for at least 3 months prior to entry into the study.
                This was a 1-year, multicenter, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. Patients were randomized 2:1 to receive abatacept at a fixed dose approximating 10 mg/kg by weight range, or placebo.
                The abatacept and placebo groups exhibited similar frequencies of adverse events (90% and 87%, respectively), serious adverse events (13% and 12%, respectively), and discontinuations due to adverse events (5% and 4%, respectively). Five patients (0.5%) in the abatacept group and 4 patients (0.8%) in the placebo group died during the study. Serious infections were more frequent in the abatacept group than in the placebo group (2.9% versus 1.9%). Fewer than 4% of patients in either group experienced a severe or very severe infection. The incidence of neoplasms was 3.5% in both groups. When evaluated according to background therapy, serious adverse events occurred more frequently in the subgroup receiving abatacept plus a biologic agent (22.3%) than in the other subgroups (11.7-12.5%).
                Abatacept in combination with synthetic DMARDs was well tolerated and improved physical function and physician- and patient-reported disease outcomes. However, abatacept in combination with biologic background therapies was associated with an increase in the rate of serious adverse events. Therefore, abatacept is not recommended for use in combination with biologic therapy. To investigate the efficacy and safety of abatacept in combination with etanercept in patients with active rheumatoid arthritis during a 1-year, randomised, placebo-controlled, double-blind phase, followed by an open-label, long-term extension (LTE).
                Patients continued etanercept (25 mg twice weekly) and were randomised to receive abatacept 2 mg/kg (n = 85) or placebo (n = 36). As the effective dose of abatacept was established as 10 mg/kg in a separate trial, all patients received abatacept 10 mg/kg and etanercept during the LTE.
                A total of 121 patients were randomised; 80 completed double-blind treatment and entered the LTE. During double-blind treatment, the difference in the percentage of patients achieving the primary end point (modified American College of Rheumatology (ACR) 20 response at 6 months) was not significant between groups (48.2% v 30.6%; p = 0.072). At 1 year, no notable changes in modified ACR responses were observed. Subsequent to the dosing change, similar modified ACR responses were seen during the LTE. Significant improvements in quality of life were observed with abatacept and etanercept versus placebo and etanercept in five of the eight short-form 36 subscales at 1 year. More abatacept and etanercept-treated patients experienced serious adverse events (SAEs) at 1 year than patients receiving placebo and etanercept (16.5% v 2.8%), with 3.5% v 0% experiencing serious infections.
                The combination of abatacept (at a dose of 2 mg/kg during the double-blind phase and 10 mg/kg during the LTE) and etanercept was associated with an increase in SAEs, including serious infections, with limited clinical effect. On the basis of the limited efficacy findings and safety concerns, abatacept in combination with etanercept should not be used for rheumatoid arthritis treatment. A substantial number of patients with rheumatoid arthritis have an inadequate or unsustained response to tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha) inhibitors. We conducted a randomized, double-blind, phase 3 trial to evaluate the efficacy and safety of abatacept, a selective costimulation modulator, in patients with active rheumatoid arthritis and an inadequate response to at least three months of anti-TNF-alpha therapy.
                Patients with active rheumatoid arthritis and an inadequate response to anti-TNF-alpha therapy were randomly assigned in a 2:1 ratio to receive abatacept or placebo on days 1, 15, and 29 and every 28 days thereafter for 6 months, in addition to at least one disease-modifying antirheumatic drug. Patients discontinued anti-TNF-alpha therapy before randomization. The rates of American College of Rheumatology (ACR) 20 responses (indicating a clinical improvement of 20 percent or greater) and improvement in functional disability, as reflected by scores for the Health Assessment Questionnaire (HAQ) disability index, were assessed.
                After six months, the rates of ACR 20 responses were 50.4 percent in the abatacept group and 19.5 percent in the placebo group (P<0.001); the respective rates of ACR 50 and ACR 70 responses were also significantly higher in the abatacept group than in the placebo group (20.3 percent vs. 3.8 percent, P<0.001; and 10.2 percent vs. 1.5 percent, P=0.003). At six months, significantly more patients in the abatacept group than in the placebo group had a clinically meaningful improvement in physical function, as reflected by an improvement from baseline of at least 0.3 in the HAQ disability index (47.3 percent vs. 23.3 percent, P<0.001). The incidence of adverse events and peri-infusional adverse events was 79.5 percent and 5.0 percent, respectively, in the abatacept group and 71.4 percent and 3.0 percent, respectively, in the placebo group. The incidence of serious infections was 2.3 percent in each group.
                Abatacept produced significant clinical and functional benefits in patients who had had an inadequate response to anti-TNF-alpha therapy.
                Copyright 2005 Massachusetts Medical Society. The selective co-stimulation modulator abatacept demonstrated efficacy for treating rheumatoid arthritis in early clinical studies.
                To evaluate the effects of abatacept in patients with persistent, active rheumatoid arthritis despite methotrexate treatment.
                One-year, multicenter, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial (November 2002 to October 2004).
                116 centers worldwide.
                652 patients with active rheumatoid arthritis despite methotrexate treatment.
                Once-monthly infusion of a fixed dose of abatacept, approximately 10 mg/kg of body weight, or placebo.
                Co-primary end points were a 20% improvement in American College of Rheumatology (ACR) response criteria (ACR 20) at 6 months, clinically meaningful improvements in physical function, and change from baseline in joint erosion score at 1 year.
                Four hundred thirty-three and 219 patients were randomly assigned to abatacept or placebo, respectively, and 385 (89%) and 162 (74%), respectively, completed 1 year of treatment. In a modified intention-to-treat analysis, 6-month ACR 20, ACR 50, and ACR 70 responses were 67.9% for abatacept versus 39.7% for placebo (difference, 28.2 percentage points [95% CI, 19.8 to 36.7 percentage points]), 39.9% for abatacept versus 16.8% for placebo (difference, 23.0 percentage points [CI, 15.0 to 31.1 percentage points]), and 19.8% for abatacept versus 6.5% for placebo (difference, 13.3 percentage points [CI, 7.0 to 19.5 percentage points]), respectively. At 1 year, the responses increased to 73.1% for abatacept versus 39.7% for placebo (difference, 33.4 percentage points [CI, 25.1 to 41.7 percentage points]), 48.3% for abatacept versus 18.2% for placebo (difference, 30.1 percentage points [CI, 21.8 to 38.5 percentage points]), and 28.8% for abatacept versus 6.1% for placebo (difference, 22.7 percentage points [CI, 15.6 to 29.8 percentage points]), respectively (P < 0.001 for all). Physical function significantly improved in 63.7% versus 39.3% of patients (P < 0.001). At 1 year, abatacept statistically significantly slowed the progression of structural joint damage compared with placebo. Abatacept-treated patients had a similar incidence of adverse events (87.3% vs. 84.0%; difference, 3.3 percentage points [CI, -2.5 to 9.1 percentage points]) and a higher incidence of prespecified serious infections (2.5% vs. 0.9%; difference, 1.6 percentage points [CI, -0.3 to 3.6 percentage points]) and infusion reactions (acute, 8.8% vs. 4.1%; difference, 4.7 percentage points [CI, 0.9 to 8.4 percentage points]; peri-infusional, 24.5% vs. 16.9%; difference, 7.6 percentage points [CI, 1.2 to 14.0 percentage points]) compared with placebo recipients.
                The study involved only 1 group of patients over 1 year.
                Abatacept statistically significantly reduced disease activity in patients with rheumatoid arthritis and an inadequate response to methotrexate. Longer treatment in different patient populations is needed to establish its appropriate role in rheumatoid arthritis. This double-blind trial evaluated the efficacy and safety of abatacept or infliximab vs placebo. The primary objective of this study was to evaluate the mean change from baseline in Disease Activity Score (based on erythrocyte sedimentation rates; DAS28 (ESR)) for the abatacept vs placebo groups at day 197.
                Patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and an inadequate response to methotrexate (MTX) were randomised 3:3:2 to abatacept ( approximately 10 mg/kg every 4 weeks, n = 156), infliximab (3 mg/kg every 8 weeks, n = 165), or placebo (every 4 weeks, n = 110) and background MTX. Safety and efficacy were assessed throughout the study.
                Similar patient demographics and clinical characteristics were present at baseline between groups, with mean scores of approximately 1.7 for HAQ-DI and 6.8 for DAS28 (ESR). At 6 months, mean changes in DAS28 (ESR) were significantly greater for abatacept vs placebo (-2.53 vs -1.48, p<0.001) and infliximab vs placebo (-2.25 vs -1.48, p<0.001). For abatacept vs infliximab treatment at day 365, reductions in the DAS28 (ESR) were -2.88 vs -2.25. At day 365, the following response rates were observed for abatacept and infliximab, respectively: American College of Rheumatology (ACR) 20, 72.4 and 55.8%; ACR 50, 45.5 and 36.4%; ACR 70, 26.3 and 20.6%; low disease activity score (LDAS), 35.3 and 22.4%; DAS28-defined remission, 18.7 and 12.2%; good European League Against Rheumatism (EULAR) responses, 32.0 and 18.5%; and Health Assessment Questionnaire Disability Index (HAQ-DI), 57.7 and 52.7%. Mean changes in physical component summary (PCS) were 9.5 and 7.6, and mental component summary (MCS) were 6.0 and 4.0, for abatacept and infliximab, respectively. Over 1 year, adverse events (AEs) (89.1 vs 93.3%), serious AEs (SAEs) (9.6 vs 18.2%), serious infections (1.9 vs 8.5%) and discontinuations due to AEs (3.2 vs 7.3%) and SAEs (2.6 vs 3.6%) were lower with abatacept than infliximab.
                In this study, abatacept and infliximab (3 mg/kg every 8 weeks) demonstrated similar efficacy. Overall, abatacept had a relatively more acceptable safety and tolerability profile, with fewer SAEs, serious infections, acute infusional events and discontinuations due to AEs than the infliximab group. Trial registration number: NCT00095147. Etanercept and methotrexate are effective in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis but no data exist on concurrent initiation or use of the combination compared with either drug alone. We aimed to assess combination treatment with etanercept and methotrexate versus the monotherapies in patients with rheumatoid arthritis.
                In a double-blind, randomised, clinical efficacy, safety, and radiographic study, 686 patients with active rheumatoid arthritis were randomly allocated to treatment with etanercept 25 mg (subcutaneously twice a week), oral methotrexate (up to 20 mg every week), or the combination. Clinical response was assessed by criteria of the American College of Rheumatology (ACR). The primary efficacy endpoint was the numeric index of the ACR response (ACR-N) area under the curve (AUC) over the first 24 weeks. The primary radiographic endpoint was change from baseline to week 52 in total joint damage and was assessed with the modified Sharp score. Analysis was by intention to treat.
                Four patients did not receive any drug; thus 682 were studied. ACR-N AUC at 24 weeks was greater for the combination group compared with etanercept alone and methotrexate alone (18.3%-years [95% CI 17.1-19.6] vs 14.7%-years [13.5-16.0], p<0.0001, and 12.2%-years [11.0-13.4], p<0.0001; respectively). The mean difference in ACR-N AUC between combination and methotrexate alone was 6.1 (95% CI 4.5-7.8, p<0.0001) and between etanercept and methotrexate was 2.5 (0.8-4.2, p=0.0034). The combination was more efficacious than methotrexate or etanercept alone in retardation of joint damage (mean total Sharp score -0.54 [95% CI -1.00 to -0.07] vs 2.80 [1.08 to 4.51], p<0.0001, and 0.52 [-0.10 to 1.15], p=0.0006; respectively). The mean difference in total Sharp score between combination and methotrexate alone was -3.34 (95% CI -4.86 to -1.81, p<0.0001) and between etanercept and methotrexate was -27 (-3.81 to -0.74, p=0.0469). The number of patients reporting infections or adverse events was similar in all groups.
                The combination of etanercept and methotrexate was significantly better in reduction of disease activity, improvement of functional disability, and retardation of radiographic progression compared with methotrexate or etanercept alone. These findings bring us closer to achievement of remission and repair of structural damage in rheumatoid arthritis. To compare the relative safety and efficacy of azathioprine (AZA), methotrexate (MTX), and the combination of both in the treatment of active rheumatoid arthritis (RA).
                Two hundred twelve patients with active RA were entered into a 24-week prospective, controlled, double-blind, multicenter trial and were randomly assigned to 1 of 3 treatment groups.
                One hundred fifty-eight patients finished 24 weeks of the study. There were no remissions seen but response rates were greater than 30% for all outcome measures. Combination therapy was not statistically superior to MTX therapy alone, but both combination therapy and MTX alone were superior to AZA alone when patients were analyzed by intent-to-treat and with withdrawals treated as therapy failures. If only patients who continued taking the therapy were analyzed, the mean improvement was greater for AZA therapy than for MTX, while the combination remained the most active. Adverse effects on the gastrointestinal tract and elevations of liver enzyme levels were the most frequent causes for discontinuations.
                Both combination therapy and MTX alone were superior to therapy with AZA alone for active RA but were not statistically different in their effect on outcome assessment.
There is moderate-level evidence that abatacept is efficacious and safe in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis. Abatacept should not be used in combination with other biologics to treat rheumatoid arthritis. The withdrawal and toxicity profile appears acceptable at the present time but further long-term studies and post-marketing surveillance are required to assess harms and sustained efficacy.