Disease activity of rheumatoid arthritis and kidney function decline: a large prospective registry study.

INTRODUCTION: Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a common comorbidity of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The association of longitudinal RA disease activity with long-term kidney function has remained uncertain. METHOD: We analysed a multicentre prospective RA registry in the USA from 2001 to 2022. The exposure was updated time-averaged Clinical Disease Activity Index (TA-CDAI) categories from study enrolment. The primary outcome was a longitudinal estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) change. Secondary outcomes included developments of CKD stage G3a (eGFR<60 mL/min/1.73 m2) and stage G3b (eGFR<45 mL/min/1.73 m2). Results were adjusted for relevant time-fixed and time-varying covariates. RESULTS: 31 129 patients (median age: 58.0 years, female: 76.3%, median eGFR: 90.7 mL/min/1.73 m2) contributed 234 973 visits and 146 778 person-years of follow-up. Multivariable mixed-effect linear model showed an average annual eGFR decline during follow-up in the TA-CDAI-remission group of -0.83 mL/min/1.73 m2 and estimated additional annual declines (95% CI) of -0.09 (-0.15 to -0.03) in low, -0.17 (-0.23 to -0.10) in moderate and -0.18 (-0.27 to -0.08) mL/min/1.73 m2 in high disease activity patients. Compared with TA-CDAI remission, adjusted HRs (95% CI) for CKD stage G3a during follow-up were 1.15 (1.01 to 1.30) in low, 1.22 (1.06 to 1.40) in moderate and 1.27 (1.05 to 1.52) in high disease activity; for CKD stage G3b, 1.22 (0.84 to 1.76) in low, 1.66 (1.12 to 2.45) in moderate and 1.93 (1.16 to 3.20) in high disease activity. CONCLUSIONS: Higher RA disease activity was associated with accelerated eGFR decline and increased risk of clinically relevant kidney dysfunction. Future intervention studies should attempt to replicate the association between RA disease activity and eGFR.

Patterns in the Sequential Treatment of Patients With Rheumatoid Arthritis Starting a Biologic or Targeted Synthetic Disease-Modifying Antirheumatic Drug: 10-Year Experience From a US-Based Registry.

OBJECTIVE: Developing and evaluating new treatment guidelines for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) based on observational data requires a quantitative understanding of patterns in current treatment practice with biologic and targeted synthetic disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (b/tsDMARDs). METHODS: We used data from the CorEvitas RA registry to study patients starting their first b/tsDMARD therapy, defined as the first line of therapy, between 2012 and the end of 2021. We identified treatment patterns as unique sequences of therapy changes following and including the first-line therapy. Therapy cycling was defined as switching back to a treatment from a previously used therapeutic class. RESULTS: A total of 6015 b/tsDMARD-naïve patients (77% female) were included in the analysis. Their median age was 58 years, and their median disease duration was 3 years. In 2012-2014, 80% of the patients started a tumor necrosis factor inhibitor (TNFi) as their first b/tsDMARD. However, the use of TNFi decreased in favor of Janus kinase inhibitors since 2015. Although the number of treatment patterns was large, therapy cycling was relatively common. For example, 601 patterns were observed among 1133 patients who changed therapy at least four times, of whom 85.3% experienced therapy cycling. Furthermore, the duration of each of the first three lines of therapy decreased over the past decade. For example, the median duration of the first-line therapy was 153 days in 2018-2021 compared to 208 days in 2015-2017 (P < 0.001). CONCLUSION: First-line therapy was almost always TNFi, but diversity in treatment choice was high after that. This practice variation allows for proposing and evaluating new guidelines for sequential treatment of RA. It also presents statistical challenges to compare patients with different treatment sequences.

Assessing clusters of comorbidities in rheumatoid arthritis: a machine learning approach.

BACKGROUND: Comorbid conditions are very common in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and several prior studies have clustered them using machine learning (ML). We applied various ML algorithms to compare the clusters of comorbidities derived and to assess the value of the clusters for predicting future clinical outcomes. METHODS: A large US-based RA registry, CorEvitas, was used to identify patients for the analysis. We assessed the presence of 24 comorbidities, and ML was used to derive clusters of patients with given comorbidities. K-mode, K-mean, regression-based, and hierarchical clustering were used. To assess the value of these clusters, we compared clusters across different ML algorithms in clinical outcome models predicting clinical disease activity index (CDAI) and health assessment questionnaire (HAQ-DI). We used data from the first 3 years of the 6-year study period to derive clusters and assess time-averaged values for CDAI and HAQ-DI during the latter 3 years. Model fit was assessed via adjusted R2 and root mean square error for a series of models that included clusters from ML clustering and each of the 24 comorbidities separately. RESULTS: 11,883 patients with RA were included who had longitudinal data over 6 years. At baseline, patients were on average 59 (SD 12) years of age, 77% were women, CDAI was 11.3 (SD 11.9, moderate disease activity), HAQ-DI was 0.32 (SD 0.42), and disease duration was 10.8 (SD 9.9) years. During the 6 years of follow-up, the percentage of patients with various comorbidities increased. Using five clusters produced by each of the ML algorithms, multivariable regression models with time-averaged CDAI as an outcome found that the ML-derived comorbidity clusters produced similarly strong models as models with each of the 24 separate comorbidities entered individually. The same patterns were observed for HAQ-DI. CONCLUSIONS: Clustering comorbidities using ML algorithms is not computationally complex but often results in clusters that are difficult to interpret from a clinical standpoint. While ML clustering is useful for modeling multi-omics, using clusters to predict clinical outcomes produces models with a similar fit as those with individual comorbidities.

Patterns in the sequential treatment of rheumatoid arthritis patients starting a b/tsDMARD: 10-year experience from a US-based registry.

Objectives: Developing and evaluating new treatment guidelines for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) based on observational data requires a quantitative understanding of patterns in current treatment practice with biologic and targeted synthetic disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (b/tsDMARDs). Methods: We used data from the CorEvitas RA registry to study patients starting their first b/tsDMARD therapy-defined as the first line of therapy-between 2012 and the end of 2021. We identified treatment patterns as unique sequences of therapy changes following and including the first-line therapy. Therapy cycling was defined as switching back to a treatment from a previously used therapeutic class. Results: 6,015 b/tsDMARD-naive patients (77% female) were included in the analysis. Their median age was 58 years, and their median disease duration was 3 years. In 2012-2014, 80% of the patients started a tumor necrosis factor inhibitor (TNFi) as their first b/tsDMARD. However, the use of TNFi decreased in favour of Janus kinase inhibitors (JAKi) since 2015. While the number of treatment patterns was large, therapy cycling was relatively common. For example, 601 patterns were observed among 1133 patients who changed therapy at least four times, of whom 85.3% experienced therapy cycling. Furthermore, the duration of each of the first three lines of therapy decreased over the past decade. Conclusion: First-line therapy was almost always TNFi, but diversity in treatment choice was high after that. This practice variation allows for proposing and evaluating new guidelines for sequential treatment of RA. It also presents statistical challenges to compare subjects with different treatment sequences.

Fracture in clinical studies of tofacitinib in rheumatoid arthritis.

Background: Preclinical data suggest that tofacitinib would protect bone health in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Objective: To assess fracture risk in tofacitinib RA clinical trials. Design: Post hoc analysis. Methods: We analyzed pooled data of phase I/II/III and long-term extension studies ('P123LTE cohort'), pooled data of placebo-controlled portions of phase III studies (phase III placebo-controlled cohort), and data from ORAL Surveillance [phase IIIb/IV randomized, open-label trial evaluating tofacitinib 5/10 mg twice daily (BID) vs tumor necrosis factor inhibitor (TNFi) in patients ⩾ 50 years with ⩾ 1 additional cardiovascular risk factor]. Results: In the phase III placebo-controlled cohort, incidence rates (IRs) [95% confidence interval (CI)] of fracture were 2.11 (1.09-3.68), 2.56 (1.23-4.71), and 4.43 (1.78-9.12) per 100 patient-years (PYs) for tofacitinib 5 mg BID, tofacitinib 10 mg BID, and placebo, respectively [tofacitinib 5 mg BID vs placebo: hazard ratio (HR) (95% CI) = 0.55(0.18-1.65); tofacitinib 10 mg BID vs placebo: HR (95% CI) = 0.72 (0.26-2.01)]. In P123LTE, IRs (95% CI) were 2.62 (2.29-2.99) and 2.26 (2.02-2.52) per 100 PY for average tofacitinib 5 and 10 mg BID, respectively. In ORAL Surveillance, IRs (95% CI) were 2.79 (2.34-3.30), 2.87 (2.40-3.40), and 2.27 (1.87-2.74) per 100 PY for tofacitinib 5 mg BID, tofacitinib 10 mg BID, and TNFi, respectively. In ORAL Surveillance, the risk of fracture was numerically higher than TNFi for tofacitinib 5 mg BID [HR (95% CI) = 1.23 (0.96-1.58)] and tofacitinib 10 mg BID [HR (95% CI) = 1.26 (0.97-1.62)]. In ORAL Surveillance, independent predictors of all and osteoporotic fractures with tofacitinib or TNFi included age ⩾ 65, female sex, history of fracture/osteoporosis, and baseline oral corticosteroid use. Conclusion: This post hoc analysis showed numerically lower fracture risk with tofacitinib versus placebo and numerically greater risk versus TNFi. We did not identify any tofacitinib-specific predictors of fractures, and predictors of fracture were generally aligned with prior literature in the general population and patients with RA. Patients with fracture risk factors should be adequately monitored and treated. Clinical trial registration: NCT00960440, NCT00847613, NCT00814307, NCT00856544, NCT00853385, NCT01039688, NCT02187055, NCT02831855, NCT00413699, NCT00147498, NCT00413660, NCT00550446, NCT00603512, NCT00687193, NCT00661661, NCT01164579, NCT00976599, NCT01059864, NCT01359150, NCT01262118, NCT01484561, NCT02281552, NCT02147587, NCT02092467.

Assessing the change in disease severity based on depressive symptoms in real-world psoriasis patients.

Aim: To evaluate whether the presence of a history of depression hinders psoriasis response to systemic therapies and to delineate baseline characteristics of patients whose depressive symptoms improved on systemic treatment. Methods: We studied patients within the Corrona® Psoriasis Registry, a prospective, multicenter observational disease-based registry, that were enrolled through September 2018, comparing changes from enrollment to 12-month visit. Results: There was a statistically significant improvement in all disease characteristics and most patient-reported outcomes in patients reporting a history of depression and in those that did not while there was no statistically significant difference in the degree of change comparing these two cohorts. Patients who noted improvement in depressive symptoms had more severe baseline disease characteristics and reported overall worse baseline patient-reported outcomes. Conclusions: History of depression does not portend a differential response to systemic treatment. Patients with improvement in depressive symptoms had worse baseline characteristics.

Postapproval Comparative Safety Study of Tofacitinib and Biological Disease-Modifying Antirheumatic Drugs: 5-Year Results from a United States-Based Rheumatoid Arthritis Registry.

OBJECTIVE: Tofacitinib is an oral Janus kinase inhibitor for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). We compared 5-year adverse event (AE) incidence rates (IRs) between patients initiating tofacitinib and those initiating new biological disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (bDMARDs) within the United States (US) Corrona RA registry. METHODS: IRs (number of first events/100 patient-years) of major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE), serious infection events (SIEs), herpes zoster (HZ), malignancies, and death were estimated among tofacitinib and bDMARD initiators, regardless of dose/schedule, between November 6, 2012 (US Food and Drug Administration tofacitinib approval), and July 31, 2018 (follow-up through January 31, 2019). Propensity score (PS) methods were used to control for nonrandom prescribing practices. Hazard ratios (HRs) were calculated to compare rates using multivariable-adjusted Cox regression. Different risk windows were used for acute (MACE, SIEs, HZ, and venous thromboembolic events [VTEs]) and long-term (malignancy and death) events. VTEs were assessed descriptively. RESULTS: For MACE, SIEs, and HZ, 1999 (3152.1 patient-years) and 8358 (12 869.4 years) tofacitinib and bDMARD initiators were included, respectively; for malignancy/death, 1999 (4505.6 patient-years) and 6354 (16 670.8 patient-years) initiators were included, respectively. AE rates were similar across cohorts, except for HZ, which was significantly higher with tofacitinib versus bDMARDs (PS-trimmed adjusted HR 2.32; 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.43-3.75). There were 45 (zero serious) and 88 (five serious) HZ events with tofacitinib and bDMARDs, respectively. Sensitivity analyses demonstrated similar results. VTE IRs (95% CI) were 0.29 (0.13-0.54) and 0.33 (0.24-0.45) for tofacitinib and bDMARDs, respectively. CONCLUSION: In this registry analysis, both cohorts had similar MACE, SIE, malignancy, death, and VTE rates; HZ rates were higher for tofacitinib initaitors than for bDMARD initiators.

Characteristics of Patients with Psoriasis Treated with Apremilast in the Corrona Psoriasis Registry.

INTRODUCTION: Data on the characteristics of apremilast patients in real-world settings are limited. We assessed the demographics and disease characteristics of apremilast-treated patients in the Corrona Psoriasis Registry overall and by treatment history. METHODS: The Corrona Psoriasis Registry is a large, independent, prospective, observational registry of adult patients (age ≥ 18 years) who initiate an eligible systemic medication for treatment of psoriasis at or after enrollment (incident users) or within 12 months before enrollment (prevalent users). The current analyses included psoriasis patients enrolled in the Corrona Psoriasis Registry between April 1, 2015, and January 7, 2018. Patients were adults (age ≥ 18 years) with psoriasis who were enrolled between April 1, 2015, and January 7, 2018 and initiated apremilast at the time of registry enrollment or a subsequent visit (incident users) or within the 12 months prior to registry enrollment (prevalent users). Patient characteristics were evaluated descriptively at the index date, defined as the enrollment date for prevalent users and the visit when apremilast was initiated for incident users. RESULTS: Among 660 patients who initiated apremilast at registry enrollment or a visit thereafter, psoriatic arthritis, hypertension, and hyperlipidemia were common. There were more systemic-experienced (61.4%) versus systemic-naive (38.6%) patients; 43.8% had prior biologic exposure. Most patients were not receiving concomitant systemic treatment (70.2%); 27.4% were receiving concomitant biologic therapy. Most patients had mild or moderate disease (psoriasis-involved body surface area ≤ 10% [76.0%], Investigator Global Assessment ≤ 3 [88.3%], Psoriasis Area and Severity Index ≤ 10 [84.5%]). Dermatologist-reported psoriatic arthritis was present in 47.0% of patients; 33.9% of patients had a Psoriasis Epidemiology Screening Tool score of ≥ 3, suggestive of psoriatic arthritis. Systemic-experienced apremilast patients had higher rates of obesity and comorbidities and experienced a greater impact on quality of life (mean Dermatology Life Quality Index, 7.3 vs. 6.5) versus systemic-naive patients. CONCLUSION: In this real-world observational study of apremilast users in the Corrona Psoriasis Registry, most patients had less-severe disease and higher rates of prior exposure to biologic treatments compared with patients with moderate-to-severe psoriasis enrolled in phase 3 clinical studies.

Real-World Evidence to Contextualize Clinical Trial Results and Inform Regulatory Decisions: Tofacitinib Modified-Release Once-Daily vs Immediate-Release Twice-Daily for Rheumatoid Arthritis.

INTRODUCTION: Tofacitinib is an oral Janus kinase inhibitor for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). To provide additional clinical evidence in regulatory submissions for a modified-release (MR) once-daily (QD) tofacitinib formulation, we compared real-world adherence and effectiveness between patients initiating the MR QD formulation and patients initiating an immediate-release (IR) twice-daily (BID) formulation. METHODS: Two noninterventional cohort studies were conducted. First, adherence and two effectiveness proxies were compared between patients with RA who newly initiated tofacitinib MR 11 mg QD or IR 5 mg BID in the IBM® MarketScan® Commercial and Medicare Supplemental US insurance claims databases (March 2016-October 2018). Second, using data collected in the Corrona US RA Registry (February 2016-August 2019), two Clinical Disease Activity Index (CDAI)-based measures of effectiveness were compared between tofacitinib MR 11 mg QD and IR 5 mg BID, and against noninferiority criteria derived from placebo-controlled clinical trials of the tofacitinib IR formulation. Multiple sensitivity analyses of the registry data were conducted to reassure regulators of consistent results across different assumptions. RESULTS: In each study, approximately two-thirds of patients initiated the MR formulation. In the claims database study, improved adherence and at least comparable effectiveness were observed with tofacitinib MR vs IR over 12 months, particularly in patients without prior advanced therapy. In the registry study, the noninferiority of tofacitinib MR vs IR was demonstrated for both CDAI outcomes at ~6 months; this finding was robust across multiple sensitivity analyses. CONCLUSION: These results demonstrate the value of real-world evidence from complementary data sources in understanding the impact of medication adherence with a QD formulation in clinical practice. These analyses were suitable for regulatory consideration as an important component of evidence for the comparability of tofacitinib MR 11 mg QD vs IR 5 mg BID in patients with RA. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Claims database study: ClinicalTrials.gov identifier NCT04018001, retrospectively registered July 12, 2019. Corrona US RA Registry study: ClinicalTrials.gov identifier NCT04267380, retrospectively registered February 12, 2020.

Persistence on biologic DMARD monotherapy after achieving rheumatoid arthritis disease control on combination therapy: retrospective analysis of corrona registry data.

Biological disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (bDMARDs) monotherapy may enhance adherence and decrease adverse events compared to combination therapy with conventional synthetic DMARDs (csDMARDs); however, persistence with bDMARD monotherapy has not been extensively studied. We explore persistence of etanercept monotherapy and monotherapy with other tumor necrosis factor inhibitors (TNFis) among patients first achieving remission/low disease activity (LDA) while on combination therapy with csDMARDs and a TNFi. Using Corrona registry data, the percentage of patients persistent with the index TNFi (etanercept versus other TNFis) over 6 and 12 months was determined. Factors influencing persistence and treatment patterns at 6 and 12 months were examined. Among 617 eligible patients, 56% of 182 patients on etanercept and 45% of 435 patients on other TNFis persisted with monotherapy at 6 months, 46% and 33%, respectively, at 12 months. Across first-line and subsequent biologic DMARDs, etanercept persistence was greater than other TNFi persistence by 10.8% (95% CI 2.1%, 19.6%) at 6 months and 11.4% (95% CI 0.9%, 21.9%) at 12 months. Patients on other TNFis were more likely to require reintroduction of csDMARD after 6 months (45% versus 35% for etanercept). Remission was the key predictor of persistence for both etanercept and other TNFi monotherapies. This retrospective, cohort study of registry data reflecting real-world practice indicates patients who achieve remission/LDA with combination csDMARD and TNFi therapy may successfully transition to TNFi monotherapy. Patients on etanercept monotherapy experienced greater persistence and less frequent reintroduction of a csDMARD than was observed for patients on other TNFi monotherapies.

Assessing disease severity in bio-naïve patients with RA on treatment with csDMARDs: insights from the Corrona Registry.

INTRODUCTION: This study aimed to characterize disease burden among patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) with moderate-to-high disease activity who had received conventional synthetic disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drug (csDMARD) monotherapy for ≥ 6 months but had not advanced to a biologic therapy. METHODS: Patients enrolled in the US Corrona RA Registry between June 1, 2014, and January 30, 2018, with 6 months of continuous csDMARD monotherapy, with moderate-to-high disease activity, who remained biologic naive, and who had ≥ 1 follow-up visit were identified. Disease activity was assessed among patients with a 6-month follow-up visit (± 3 months). Descriptive statistics were used to compare demographics and disease characteristics between patients with or without treatment advancement. RESULTS: The study included 409 patients with a disease activity assessment at 6 months (mean (SD) age 65.9 (12.6) years; mean duration of csDMARD therapy 407 (221) days). Of those patients, more than half (54%, n = 219) remained in moderate-to-high disease activity. Patients remaining in moderate-to-high vs. remission-to-low disease activity had higher baseline swollen (6.1) and tender joint counts (6.8). Over the 6-month period, treatment advancement occurred in 29% of patients. Those who advanced treatment (n = 118) vs. did not advance treatment (n = 291) were younger, had a shorter duration of RA, had higher disease activity, and reported higher levels of pain and fatigue. CONCLUSIONS: The substantial number of patients with persistent moderate-to-high disease on csDMARDs over a 6-month period and who did not advance treatment indicates that there is considerable need for a treat-to-target approach to care for patients with RA.Key Points•For patients with RA and an inadequate response to treatment with initial csDMARD monotherapy, guidelines recommend treatment advancement; however, this may not be occurring in real-world clinical settings.•In the current study, a substantial proportion of patients (54%) on csDMARDs had persistent moderate-to-severe disease activity at the 6-month (± 3 months) follow-up visit; however, only 29% of patients had their medication treatment advanced, indicating that there is considerable need for a treat-to-target approach to care for patients with RA.•Patients with younger age, shorter RA duration, and higher disease activity were more likely to have their medication treatment advanced, which suggests that potentially more aggressive treatment of disease activity is needed across the whole RA population.

Longterm, Real-world Safety of Adalimumab in Rheumatoid Arthritis: Analysis of a Prospective US-based Registry.

OBJECTIVE: To assess longterm safety in a US cohort of patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) treated with adalimumab (ADA) in real-world clinical care settings. METHODS: This observational study analyzed the longterm incidence of safety outcomes among patients with RA initiating ADA, using data from the Corrona RA registry. Patients were adults (≥ 18 yrs) who initiated ADA treatment between January 2008 and June 2017, and who had at least 1 followup visit. RESULTS: In total, 2798 ADA initiators were available for analysis, with a mean age of 54.5 years, 77% female, and mean disease duration of 8.3 years. Nearly half (48%) were biologic-naive, and 9% were using prednisone ≥ 10 mg at ADA initiation. The incidence rates per 100 person-years for serious infections, congestive heart failure requiring hospitalization, malignancy (excluding nonmelanoma skin cancer), and all-cause mortality were 1.86, 0.15, 0.64, and 0.33, respectively. The incidence of serious infections was higher in the first year of therapy (3.44, 95% CI 2.45-4.84) than in subsequent years, while other measured adverse effects did not vary substantially by duration of exposure. The median time to ADA discontinuation was 11 months, while the median time to first serious infection among those experiencing a serious infection event was 12 months. CONCLUSION: Analysis of longterm data from this prospective real-world registry demonstrated a safety profile consistent with previous studies in patients with RA. This analysis did not identify any new safety signals associated with ADA treatment and provides guidance for physicians prescribing ADA for extended periods.

US real-world effectiveness of secukinumab for the treatment of psoriasis: 6-month analysis from the Corrona Psoriasis Registry.

Objective: To examine the real-world effectiveness of secukinumab with regard to clinical and patient-reported outcomes (PROs) from enrollment to a 6-month follow-up visit in patients with psoriasis in the Corrona Psoriasis Registry.Methods: Eligible patients aged ≥ 18 years who initiated secukinumab at enrollment in the Corrona Psoriasis Registry and had a 6-month follow-up visit (window: 5-9 months) as of December 31 2017, were included in the analysis. Measures of disease severity and PROs were assessed in patients who maintained secukinumab treatment at the 6-month follow-up visit.Results: Of the 144 patients who initiated secukinumab at enrollment and had a 6-month follow-up visit, 118 (81.9%) maintained secukinumab treatment at 6 months and demonstrated significant improvements in affected body surface area (BSA) and 5-point Investigator's Global Assessment (IGA) score (all p < .01). The majority of patients were biologic experienced (89.8%). In addition, patients reported significant improvements in quality of life, as well as in pain, itch, fatigue, work productivity, and daily activities (all p < .01).Conclusions: Secukinumab significantly improved disease severity and PROs after 6 months of follow-up in this real-world study, which is consistent with other current real-world studies.

Comparative Effectiveness of Abatacept Versus Tumor Necrosis Factor Inhibitors in Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis Who Are Anti-CCP Positive in the United States Corrona Registry.

INTRODUCTION: Anti-citrullinated protein antibodies (ACPAs) are highly specific serological biomarkers that are indicative of a poor prognosis in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The effectiveness of biologic disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (bDMARDs) with different mechanisms of action may vary, based on patients' serostatus. The aim of this study is to compare the effectiveness of abatacept versus tumor necrosis factor inhibitors (TNFis) in patients with RA who were anti-cyclic citrullinated peptide antibody positive (anti-CCP+). METHODS: Abatacept or TNFi initiators with anti-CCP+ status (≥ 20 U/ml) at or prior to treatment initiation were identified from a large observational US cohort (1 December 2005-31 August 2016). Using propensity score matching (1:1), stratified by prior TNFi use (0, 1 and ≥ 2), effectiveness at 6 months after initiation was evaluated. Primary outcome was mean change in Clinical Disease Activity Index (CDAI) score. Secondary outcomes included achievement of remission (CDAI ≤ 2.8), low disease activity/remission (CDAI ≤ 10), modified American College of Rheumatology 20/50/70 responses and mean change in modified Health Assessment Questionnaire score. RESULTS: After propensity score matching, the baseline characteristics between 330 pairs of abatacept and TNFi initiators (biologic naïve, n = 97; TNFi experienced, n = 233) were well balanced with absolute value standardized differences of ≤ 0.1. Both overall, and in the biologic-naïve cohort, there were no significant differences in mean change in CDAI score at 6 months. However, in the TNFi-experienced cohort, there was a significantly greater improvement in CDAI score at 6 months with abatacept versus TNFi initiators (p = 0.033). Secondary outcomes showed similar trends. CONCLUSIONS: Improvements in clinical disease activity were seen in anti-CCP+ abatacept and TNFi initiators. TNFi-experienced anti-CCP+ patients with RA had more improvement in disease activity with abatacept versus TNFis, whereas outcomes were similar between treatments in the overall population and in biologic-naïve patients. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT01625650. FUNDING: This study is sponsored by Corrona, LLC and funded by Bristol-Myers Squibb. Bristol-Myers Squibb funded the publication of this manuscript.

Intimate Partner Relationships, Work-Life Factors, and Their Associations With Burnout Among Partnered Pediatric Residents.

BACKGROUND: Burnout is prevalent among pediatric residents, and reducing burnout is a priority for pediatric residency programs. Understanding residents' personal circumstances, including relationship satisfaction and perceived work-life conflict, may identify novel determinants of burnout. OBJECTIVES: To describe intimate partner relationships among pediatric residents and examine associations among relationship satisfaction, work-life factors, and burnout. METHODS: We identified 203 partnered residents (married or in a self-identified committed, ongoing relationship) from a cross-sectional survey of 258 residents in 11 New England pediatric programs (response rate 54% of 486 surveys distributed), conducted from April through June of 2013. We analyzed associations among relationship satisfaction, work-life factors, and burnout using multivariable regression. Burnout was measured with the brief Maslach Burnout Inventory, and relationship satisfaction with the validated Relationship Assessment Scale. RESULTS: Burnout was reported by 40.9% of partnered respondents. The vast majority of partnered residents (n = 167; 85.2%) reported high relationship satisfaction. Lower relationship satisfaction was not associated with burnout. Approximately half of the respondents (n = 102; 51.5%) reported being satisfied with life as a resident. When controlling for common stressors, such as sleep deprivation, work-life measures associated with burnout included frequent perceived conflicts between personal and professional life (adjusted odds ratio, 4.35; 95% confidence interval, 1.91-9.88) and dissatisfaction with life as a resident (adjusted odds ratio, 11.74; 95% confidence interval, 4.23-32.57). CONCLUSION: Low relationship satisfaction and common work-life stressors were not associated with burnout among partnered pediatric residents. However, perceived work-life conflict and dissatisfaction with resident life were strongly associated with burnout and are targets for residency programs seeking to ameliorate burnout.

Do Poor Prognostic Factors in Rheumatoid Arthritis Affect Treatment Choices and Outcomes? Analysis of a US Rheumatoid Arthritis Registry.

OBJECTIVE: To characterize patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) by number of poor prognostic factors (PPF: functional limitation, extraarticular disease, seropositivity, erosions) and evaluate treatment acceleration, clinical outcomes, and work status over 12 months by number of PPF. METHODS: Using the Corrona RA registry (January 2005-December 2015), biologic-naive patients with diagnosed RA having 12-month (± 3 mos) followup were identified and categorized by PPF (0-1, 2, ≥ 3). Changes in medication, Clinical Disease Activity Index (CDAI), and work status (baseline-12 mos) were evaluated using linear and logistic regression models. RESULTS: There were 3458 patients who met the selection criteria: 1489 (43.1%), 1214 (35.1%), and 755 (21.8%) had 0-1, 2, or ≥ 3 PPF, respectively. At baseline, patients with ≥ 3 PPF were older, and had longer RA duration and higher CDAI versus those with 0-1 PPF. In 0-1, 2, and ≥ 3 PPF groups, respectively, 20.9%, 23.2%, and 26.5% of patients received ≥ 1 biologic (p = 0.011). Biologic/targeted synthetic disease-modifying antirheumatic drug (tsDMARD) use was similar in patients with/without PPF (p = 0.57). After adjusting for baseline CDAI, mean (standard error) change in CDAI was -4.95 (0.24), -4.53 (0.27), and -2.52 (0.34) for 0-1, 2, and ≥ 3 PPF groups, respectively. More patients were working at baseline but not at 12-month followup in 2 (13.9%) and ≥ 3 (12.5%) versus 0-1 (7.3%) PPF group. CONCLUSION: Despite high disease activity and worse clinical outcomes, number of PPF did not significantly predict biologic/tsDMARD use. This may warrant reconsideration of the importance of PPF in treat-to-target approaches.

Delayed Treatment Acceleration in Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis Who Have Inadequate Response to Initial Tumor Necrosis Factor Inhibitors: Data from the Corrona Registry.

BACKGROUND: The implementation of treat-to-target principles in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) has not been fully investigated in patients with inadequate response to tumor necrosis factor (TNF) inhibitor treatment. OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the prevalence of an inadequate response to initial TNF inhibitor treatment at 6 and 12 months among patients with RA in a real-world patient registry, as well as the delay in therapy adjustment and its impact on disease activity and patient-reported outcome (PRO) measures. METHODS: This analysis is based on data of patients with moderate or severe disease activity (Clinical Disease Activity Index [CDAI] score >10) who were included in the Consortium of Rheumatology Researchers of North America (Corrona) RA registry, a prospective, observational database. The patients had never received treatment with a biologic disease-modifying antirheumatic drug (DMARD) and had initiated treatment with a TNF inhibitor (adalimumab, certolizumab pegol, etanercept, golimumab, or infliximab) between October 2001 and December 2014. We evaluated treatment response (CDAI score ≤10), select PRO measures, and treatment changes at 6 months. Patients who had an inadequate response to TNF inhibitor therapy at 6 months and continued to use their initial TNF inhibitor were evaluated again at 12 months. RESULTS: This retrospective analysis included 2282 patients. At 6 months, 1732 (75.9%) of the patients continued to use their initial TNF inhibitor; of these, 803 (46.4%) patients had an inadequate response to treatment. Of the 803 patients who had an inadequate response at 6 months, 488 (60.8%) continued their initial treatment at 12 months. Of these 488 patients, 315 (64.5%) had an inadequate response at 12 months, and 173 (35.5%) had a response. Numerically greater improvements in all PRO measures were observed for patients who responded to therapy compared with patients with an inadequate response. CONCLUSIONS: In this real-world analysis of data from the Corrona RA registry, a considerable proportion of patients with RA had an inadequate response to the initial TNF inhibitor therapy at 6 and 12 months. Many patients continued to have moderate or high disease activity, without accelerating treatment (eg, addition or increase in the dose of concurrent conventional synthetic DMARDs or a TNF inhibitor), contrary to treat-to-target principles, thus remaining at risk for accumulating joint damage and disability.

One-year risk of serious infection in patients treated with certolizumab pegol as compared with other TNF inhibitors in a real-world setting: data from a national U.S. rheumatoid arthritis registry.

BACKGROUND: Registry studies provide a valuable source of comparative safety data for tumor necrosis factor inhibitors (TNFi) used in rheumatoid arthritis (RA), but they are subject to channeling bias. Comparing safety outcomes without accounting for channeling bias can lead to inaccurate comparisons between TNFi prescribed at different stages of the disease. In the present study, we examined the incidence of serious infection and other adverse events during certolizumab pegol (CZP) use vs other TNFi in a U.S. RA cohort before and after using a methodological approach to minimize channeling bias. METHODS: Patients with RA enrolled in the Corrona registry, aged ≥ 18 years, initiating CZP or other TNFi (etanercept, adalimumab, golimumab, or infliximab) after May 1, 2009 (n = 6215 initiations), were followed for ≤ 12 months. A propensity score (PS) model was used to control for baseline characteristics associated with the probability of receiving CZP vs other TNFi. Incidence rate ratios (IRRs) of serious infectious events (SIEs), malignancies, and cardiovascular events (CVEs) in the CZP group vs other TNFi group were calculated with 95% CIs, before and after PS matching. RESULTS: Patients were more likely to initiate CZP later in the course of therapy than those initiating other TNFi. CZP initiators (n = 975) were older and had longer disease duration, more active disease, and greater disability than other TNFi initiators (n = 5240). After PS matching, there were no clinically important differences between CZP (n = 952) and other TNFi (n = 952). Before PS matching, CZP was associated with a greater incidence of SIEs (IRR 1.53 [95% CI 1.13, 2.05]). The risk of SIEs was not different between groups after PS matching (IRR 1.26 [95% CI 0.84, 1.90]). The 95% CI of the IRRs for malignancies or CVEs included unity, regardless of PS matching, suggesting no difference in risk between CZP and other TNFi. CONCLUSIONS: After using PS matching to minimize channeling bias and compare patients with a similar likelihood of receiving CZP or other TNFi, the 1-year risk of SIEs, malignancies, and CVEs was not distinguishable between the two groups.

Effect of Anticitrullinated Protein Antibody Status on Response to Abatacept or Antitumor Necrosis Factor-α Therapy in Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis: A US National Observational Study.

OBJECTIVE: Assess whether baseline anticyclic citrullinated peptide antibodies (anti-CCP) status is associated with treatment response in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) initiating abatacept (ABA) or a tumor necrosis factor-α inhibitor (TNFi). METHODS: Using the Corrona RA registry, patients were identified who initiated ABA or a TNFi (June 2004-January 2015), had a followup visit 6 months (± 3 mos) after initiation, and anti-CCP measured at or prior to initiation. Primary outcome was mean change in Clinical Disease Activity Index (CDAI) from initiation to 6 months. Treatment response was evaluated based on a typical patient profile (female, aged 57 yrs, body mass index of 30 kg/m2, baseline CDAI of 20, 1 prior biologic, and no comorbidities other than RA). Secondary outcomes included remission and low disease activity. RESULTS: There were 566 ABA initiators [anti-CCP+ (≥ 20 units/ml): n = 362; anti-CCP- (< 20 units/ml): n = 204] and 1715 TNFi initiators (anti-CCP+: n = 1113; anti-CCP-: n = 602). Differences between treatment groups included baseline disease duration, CDAI, and prior biologic use. At 6 months, anti-CCP+ ABA initiators were associated with significantly greater CDAI response versus anti-CCP- ABA initiators; no significant difference was observed for TNFi initiators. When considering a typical RA patient profile, CDAI response was greater in anti-CCP+ versus anti-CCP- ABA initiators; anti-CCP+ versus anti-CCP- TNFi initiators were similar. Secondary outcome responses were also greater in anti-CCP+ versus anti-CCP- ABA initiators; TNFi initiators did not differ by anti-CCP status. CONCLUSION: In a US-based clinical practice setting, anti-CCP status was associated with a differential treatment response to ABA, but not TNFi.