Selective costimulation modulation with abatacept: a look at quality-of-life
outcomes in patients with rheumatoid arthritis.
Author(s): Shergy WJ.
Affiliation(s): University of Alabama School of Medicine, Huntsville, Alabama 35801, USA.
dshergy@hiwaay.net
Publication date & source: 2009, Semin Arthritis Rheum. , 38(6):434-43
OBJECTIVES: To highlight the importance of improving quality of life (QoL) in
patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and to provide a summary of the QoL
benefits provided by abatacept in patients who have an inadequate response to
disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs) and/or tumor necrosis factor (TNF)
antagonists.
METHODS: A literature search of the MEDLINE, EMBASE, and BIOSIS databases was
performed using the terms "abatacept," "cytotoxic T-lymphocyte-associated
antigen-4 (CTLA-4)" and "ORENCIA," with the coindexing terms: "abatacept,"
"CTLA-4," and "ORENCIA." Only articles presenting primary data on QoL outcomes
from randomized, placebo-controlled clinical trials of abatacept were included in
the review.
RESULTS: The literature search initially yielded 220 articles. A total of 8
articles fulfilled the inclusion criteria described above and are reviewed here.
In clinical trials to date, abatacept treatment has been shown to improve QoL in
patients who have an inadequate response to traditional DMARDs and TNF
antagonists.
CONCLUSIONS: Improvements in QoL are rated by patients as 1 of the most important
benefits of an effective treatment; however, inclusion of QoL measurements in
clinical trials as a measure of efficacy is a relatively recent event. Abatacept
has been shown to alleviate both the physical and the emotional/social burdens
that RA imposes on the patient, including improvements in day-to-day activity and
reducing sleep problems and fatigue in patients with RA who have an inadequate
response to DMARDs and/or TNF antagonists.
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