Upadacitinib monotherapy alone may improve RA significantly
Researchers have found in a clinical trial of patients with rheumatoid arthritis that JAK inhibitor upadacitinib may lead to significant improvements in clinical, radiographic, and patient-reported outcomes as monotherapy as compared to patients who were treated with methotrxate.The study has been published in Arthritis and Rheumatology.
Upadacitinib inhibits certain proteins called Janus kinase enzymes that are involved in inflammation. It's approved for treating patients with rheumatoid arthritis, but only after they've tried methotrexate.
In the study, 947 patients who had not previously taken methotrexate were randomized to receive once-daily upadacitinib (15 mg or 30 mg) or weekly methotrexate for 24 weeks. Both doses of upadacitinib lessened clinical signs of arthritis and improved patient-reported symptoms to a greater extent than methotrexate. Importantly, both doses prevented further joint damage in 88% to 89% of patients, compared with 78% of patients taking methotrexate.
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