Double-blind placebo-controlled trial of etanercept in the prevention of work disability in ankylosing spondylitis.

OBJECTIVES: Etanercept has been shown to be rapidly effective in suppressing disease activity in ankylosing spondylitis (AS). The aim of this study was to determine whether etanercept improves work instability as measured by the Ankylosing Spondylitis Work Instability Scale (AS-WIS). METHOD: Forty patients with active AS who were in work but were work unstable were recruited. Patients were randomised to receive 25 mg etanercept or placebo twice weekly for 12 weeks. The primary outcome was change in AS-WIS at week 12. The AS-WIS is a patient-derived outcome measure which allows stratification of the risk of job loss. Secondary outcomes included clinical outcomes and gait parameters. RESULTS: The mean improvement in AS-WIS score at week 12 was 2.75 in the etanercept group and 0.68 in the placebo group (p=0.125). The risk of job loss decreased for 11 (55%) of the etanercept group compared with 7 (35%) in the placebo group. Conversely, the risk of job loss increased in 3 (15%) of the placebo group compared with 1 (5%) in the etanercept group. There was no statistically significant difference between treatment groups in change in WIS categories (Mann-Whitney U test=0.153, p=0.160). Significant improvement with etanercept was seen at week 12 in clinical outcomes and gait parameters. Etanercept was well tolerated, with no dropouts due to adverse events. CONCLUSION: This small study confirms the efficacy of etanercept on clinical outcome measures in patients with AS and suggests an effect on work instability which needs to be replicated in a larger controlled study.

Clinical and imaging efficacy of infliximab in HLA-B27-Positive patients with magnetic resonance imaging-determined early sacroiliitis.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the efficacy of infliximab in HLA-B27-positive patients with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)-determined early sacroiliitis, using both clinical and MRI assessments. METHODS: Forty patients with recent-onset inflammatory back pain, as assessed by the Calin criteria, HLA-B27 positivity, clinical disease activity as measured by the Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Disease Activity Index (BASDAI), pain and morning stiffness, and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)-determined sacroiliac joint bone edema were randomized in a double-blind manner to receive infliximab 5 mg/kg or placebo at 0, 2, 6, and 12 weeks. MRI scans were performed at baseline and 16 weeks and scored by 2 observers (blinded to both the order of the scans and to treatment group), using the Leeds scoring system. Clinical assessments included the BASDAI, the Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Functional Index (BASFI), the Ankylosing Spondylitis Quality of Life (ASQoL) instrument, the ASsessment in Ankylosing Spondylitis International Working Group criteria (ASAS) for improvement, and markers of inflammation. RESULTS: The mean reduction in the total MRI score from week 0 to week 16 was significantly greater in infliximab-treated patients compared with placebo-treated patients (P = 0.033). On average, significantly more lesions resolved in the infliximab group (P < 0.001), while significantly more new lesions developed in the placebo group (P = 0.004). Significantly greater improvement in the infliximab group versus the placebo group was also observed for changes from week 0 to week 16 in the BASDAI (P = 0.002), BASFI (P = 0.004), and ASQoL (P = 0.007) scores. Responses according to the ASAS criteria for 40% improvement, the ASAS criteria for 20% improvement in 5 of 6 domains, and ASAS partial remission were achieved by 61%, 44%, and 56% of infliximab-treated patients, respectively. Infliximab was well tolerated, and no serious adverse events were observed. CONCLUSION: Infliximab was an effective therapy for early sacroiliitis, providing a reduction in disease activity by week 16. This study is the first to show that infliximab is effective for reducing clinical and imaging evidence of disease activity in patients with MRI-determined early axial spondylarthritis.

Early oligoarthritis.

Oligoarthritis is a common condition, with a variable outcome, affecting a predominantly young population; when treated conventionally, oligoarthritis has a high morbidity. The variability of outcome has limited the development of studies evaluating therapies such as disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs in recent onset disease. Oligoarthritis is an important disease that warrants much greater study.