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Mańko A, Raczkiewicz A, Górski A, Borysowski J, Wiland P. Exclusion of older adults from randomized controlled trials in rheumatoid arthritis. Rheumatology (Oxford) 2024; 63:672-679. [PMID: 37243691 DOI: 10.1093/rheumatology/kead257] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/30/2023] [Revised: 05/08/2023] [Accepted: 05/19/2023] [Indexed: 05/29/2023] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVES To assess eligibility criteria that either explicitly or implicitly exclude older patients from randomized controlled trials (RCTs) in RA. METHODS Our analysis included RCTs of pharmacological interventions registered with ClinicalTrials.gov and started between 2013 and 2022. Co-primary outcomes were proportions of trials with an upper age limit and the eligibility criteria indirectly increasing risk of the exclusion of older adults. RESULTS A total of 143/290 (49%) trials had an upper age limit of 85 years or less. Multivariable analysis showed that the odds of an upper age limit were significantly lower in trials performed in the USA [adjusted odds ratio (aOR), 0.34; CI, 0.12-0.99; P = 0.04] and intercontinental trials (aOR, 0.4; CI, 0.18-0.87; P = 0.02). In total, 154/290 (53%) trials had at least one eligibility criterion implicitly excluding older adults. These included specific comorbidities (n = 114; 39%), compliance concerns (n = 67; 23%), and broad and vague exclusion criteria (n = 57; 20%); however, we found no significant associations between these criteria and trial characteristics. Overall, 217 (75%) trials either explicitly or implicitly excluded older patients; we also noted a trend towards increasing proportion of these trials over time. Only one trial (0.3%) enrolled solely patients aged 65 and older. CONCLUSION Older adults are commonly excluded from RCTs in RA based on both age limits and other eligibility criteria. This seriously limits the evidence base for the treatment of older patients in clinical practice. Given the growing prevalence of RA in older adults, relevant RCTs should be more inclusive to them.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna Mańko
- Reuma Park Medical Center, Warsaw, Poland
| | - Anna Raczkiewicz
- Department of Internal Diseases and Rheumatology, Military Institute of Medicine, Warsaw, Poland
| | - Andrzej Górski
- Bacteriophage Laboratory, Department of Phage Therapy, Hirszfeld Institute of Immunology and Experimental Therapy, Polish Academy of Sciences, Wrocław, Poland
| | - Jan Borysowski
- Department of Clinical Immunology, Medical University of Warsaw, Warsaw, Poland
| | - Piotr Wiland
- Department of Rheumatology and Internal Medicine, Wroclaw Medical University, Wroclaw, Poland
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Barbulescu A, Sjölander A, Delcoigne B, Askling J, Frisell T. Glucocorticoid exposure and the risk of serious infections in rheumatoid arthritis: a marginal structural model application. Rheumatology (Oxford) 2023; 62:3391-3399. [PMID: 36821426 PMCID: PMC10547528 DOI: 10.1093/rheumatology/kead083] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/05/2022] [Revised: 01/30/2023] [Accepted: 02/06/2023] [Indexed: 02/24/2023] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Observational studies have reported an increased risk of infections associated with glucocorticoids in RA, not supported by evidence from randomized controlled trials. Inappropriately accommodating time-varying exposure and confounding in observational studies might explain the conflicting results. Therefore, we compared the incidence of serious infections between different oral glucocorticoid dose patterns over three years in a prospective inception cohort, adjusting for time-varying confounders in marginal structural models. METHODS We included 9654 newly diagnosed RA patients from the Swedish Rheumatology Quality Register between 2007-2018 and followed them for three years after the first rheumatology visit. Follow-up was divided into 90-day periods. A mean oral prednisone daily dose was calculated for each period and categorized into 'no use', 'low' (≤10 mg/day) and 'high' (>10 mg/day) doses. The incidence of serious infections (hospitalization for infection) over follow-up periods was modelled by pooled logistic regression allowing separate effects for recent and past exposure. RESULTS An increased incidence of serious infections was associated with higher compared with lower doses and with more recent compared with past glucocorticoid exposure. Over 3 years of follow-up, the marginal structural models predicted one additional serious infection for every 83 individuals treated with low GC doses for the first 6 months, and for every 125 individuals treated with high GC doses for the first 3 months, compared with no GC use. CONCLUSION Our results broadly agree with previous observational studies showing a dose dependent increased risk of infection associated with (recent) use of oral glucocorticoids.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrei Barbulescu
- Clinical Epidemiology Division, Department of Medicine Solna, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Arvid Sjölander
- Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Bénédicte Delcoigne
- Clinical Epidemiology Division, Department of Medicine Solna, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Johan Askling
- Clinical Epidemiology Division, Department of Medicine Solna, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
- Rheumatology, Theme Inflammation and Ageing, Karolinska University Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Thomas Frisell
- Clinical Epidemiology Division, Department of Medicine Solna, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
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Adipose-Derived Stem Cell Exosomes as a Novel Anti-Inflammatory Agent and the Current Therapeutic Targets for Rheumatoid Arthritis. Biomedicines 2022; 10:biomedicines10071725. [PMID: 35885030 PMCID: PMC9312519 DOI: 10.3390/biomedicines10071725] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2022] [Revised: 07/15/2022] [Accepted: 07/15/2022] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), a chronic inflammatory joint disorder, may not respond adequately to current RA treatments. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) elicit several immunomodulatory and anti-inflammatory effects and, thus, have therapeutic potential. Specifically, adipose-derived stem cell (ADSC)-based RA therapy may have considerable potency in modulating the immune response, and human adipose tissue is abundant and easy to obtain. Paracrine factors, such as exosomes (Exos), contribute to ADSCs’ immunomodulatory function. ADSC-Exo-based treatment can reproduce ADSCs’ immunomodulatory function and overcome the limitations of traditional cell therapy. ADSC-Exos combined with current drug therapies may provide improved therapeutic effects. Using ADSC-Exos, instead of ADSCs, to treat RA may be a promising cell-free treatment strategy. This review summarizes the current knowledge of medical therapies, ADSC-based therapy, and ADSC-Exos for RA and discusses the anti-inflammatory properties of ADSCs and ADSC-Exos. Finally, this review highlights the expanding role and potential immunomodulatory activity of ADSC-Exos in patients with RA.
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Santiago T, Voshaar M, de Wit M, Carvalho PD, Buttgereit F, Cutolo M, Paolino S, Castelar Pinheiro GR, Boers M, Da Silva JAP. Patients’ and rheumatologists’ perspectives on the efficacy and safety of low-dose glucocorticoids in rheumatoid arthritis—an international survey within the GLORIA study. Rheumatology (Oxford) 2021; 60:3334-3342. [DOI: 10.1093/rheumatology/keaa785] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/22/2020] [Revised: 10/30/2020] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Abstract
Objective
To evaluate the current perspectives of patients and health professionals regarding the efficacy and safety of low-dose glucocorticoids (GCs) in RA.
Methods
Two online surveys were disseminated to patients and health professionals, in their native language, through national patient organizations and national rheumatology medical societies, respectively. SurveyMonkey®, MediGuard.org and the Glucocorticoid Low-dose Outcome in RA Study (GLORIA) website were used to offer and deliver these surveys.
Results
A total of 1221 RA patients with exposure to GCs, and 414 rheumatologists completed the surveys. Patients and rheumatologists reported high levels of agreement regarding the efficacy of low-dose GCs: at least 70% considered that they are very rapid and effective in the control of signs and symptoms of RA. However, half of the patients also reported having suffered serious adverse events with GCs, and 83% described concerns about safety. The majority of rheumatologists estimated that endocrine, ophthalmologic and cutaneous adverse events affect >4% of all patients treated with low-dose GCs for 2 years, based on a heat map.
Conclusions
RA patients with self-reported exposure to GCs express high levels of satisfaction with low-dose GCs efficacy, as do rheumatologists. However, both expressed excessive concerns regarding the safety of GCs (greatly exceeding the published evidence data), which may compromise the optimal use of this medication. This study indicates that there is an unmet need for appropriately designed prospective trials that shed light on the real risk associated with low-dose GCs, as well as a need for renovated educational programs on the real benefits and harms of low-dose GCs, for both patients and physicians.
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Affiliation(s)
- T Santiago
- Rheumatology Department, Centro Hospitalar e Universitário de Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal
- Coimbra Institute for Clinical and Biomedical Research (i.CBR), Faculty of Medicine, University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal
| | - M Voshaar
- Department of Psychology, Health and Technology, Enschede, Netherlands and Stichting Tools Patient Empowerment, University of Twente, Amsterdam, Netherlands
| | - M de Wit
- Department of Medical Humanities, Amsterdam University Medical Center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - P D Carvalho
- Department of Rheumatology, Centro Hospitalar Universitário do Algarve, Faro, Portugal
- Lisbon Academic Medical Centre, Lisbon, Portugal
- Algarve Biomedical Center, Faro, Portugal
| | - F Buttgereit
- Department of Rheumatology and Clinical Immunology, Charité University Medicine Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - M Cutolo
- Research Laboratory and Academic Division of Clinical Rheumatology, Department of Internal Medicine, University of Genova, IRCCS Polyclinic Hospital San Martino, Genova, Italy
| | - S Paolino
- Research Laboratory and Academic Division of Clinical Rheumatology, Department of Internal Medicine, University of Genova, IRCCS Polyclinic Hospital San Martino, Genova, Italy
| | - G R Castelar Pinheiro
- Discipline of Rheumatology, Medical Science School, Rio de Janeiro State University, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - M Boers
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Amsterdam Rheumatology and Immunology Center, Amsterdam University Medical Centers, Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam, Netherlands
| | - J A P Da Silva
- Rheumatology Department, Centro Hospitalar e Universitário de Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal
- Coimbra Institute for Clinical and Biomedical Research (i.CBR), Faculty of Medicine, University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal
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