Internet-based treatment for vulvodynia (EMBLA) - Study protocol for a randomised controlled study

BACKGROUND

Vulvodynia is defined as vulvar pain for at least 3 months without a clear cause. To the best of our knowledge, there are no trials investigating the effects of internet treatment using CBT (Cognitive behavioural therapy) treatment with Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) components for women with vulvodynia. The aim of this study is to examine the effects of such a guided internet-based intervention on provoked vulvar pain during the waiting period before clinical treatment.

METHODS

We will randomise 52 patients to either guided internet-based intervention with CBT with (ACT) components or no intervention during the waiting period for treatment as usual. Online assessments are conducted at baseline, posttreatment, and at follow-up after 9 months. The primary outcome measure is provoked vulvar pain. Secondary outcomes are depression, anxiety, sexual function, and quality of life. Linear-mixed effect models will be used to assess the effect of the internet-based intervention on vulvar pain, pain acceptance, depression, anxiety, sexual function, and quality of life over time, by applying the intention-to-treat approach. Continuous data will be analysed with general linear models using intention-to-treat and also per protocol approaches to assess the effects of the intervention at different time points. Ordinal and binary data will be analysed with Mann Whitney's test, Fischer's exact test and multivariate logistic regression, respectively.

DISCUSSION

As a randomised controlled trial with short- and long-term follow-up points, the EMBLA study intends to provide a novel and better understanding regarding the treatment of vulvodynia and the role of internet-based treatment as a complement to standard care for women suffering from vulvodynia. The effects of vulvodynia on pain, sexual function, quality of life, depression, and anxiety are investigated. The study's results are expected to be of value in the planning of clinical care in the medical area. High dropout rates and technical difficulties associated with using the platform are common in similar studies.

TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER

NCT02809612.

AB0810 IMPACT OF TOLERABILITY ON RETENTION OF cDMARDs IN PSORIATIC ARTHRITIS - IS IT A CONCERN?

Background:

Most guidelines recommend the first line use of DMARDs in Psoriatic Arthritis (PsA). However, studies show that many conventional treatments like methotrexate are poorly tolerated. There is hitherto no published real-world data addressing the tolerability of DMARDs in PsA.

Objectives:

Our objective was therefore to assess the drug management in PsA with focus on tolerability and the reasons for therapy cessation.

Methods:

We conducted a retrospective analysis of all PsA patients enrolled in electronic database up to April 2019 at our university teaching hospital. We had access to full patient records including details on co-morbidities, drugs and disease management

Results:

335 patients were identified with a formal diagnosis of PsA. Mean age of the cohort was 46 years (13-81) and 58% were female. 48% of the group had clinically active disease. Same percentage were taking a single DMARD. 10% had trialled 3 or more drugs. 62% of patients had discontinued one or more DMARDs prior. The mean duration before discontinuing a DMARD was 9.9 months. Methotrexate was the best tolerated and on average discontinued after 13.4 months (range: 4 days to 10.9 years). Sulfasalazine and Hydroxychloroquine were discontinued after an average of 8.4 (11 days to 4.27 years) and 12.5 months (1.3 months to 2.88 years) respectively. Leflunomide was the least tolerated DMARD and stopped after an average of 5.5 months (7 days to 2.53 years). The main reason for stopping a medication was gastro-intestinal symptoms which accounted for 42% of all the reported side effects. This applied to both methotrexate (43%) and sulfasalazine (46%) discontinuation. The leading reasons for discontinuing Hydroxychloroquine were jointly GI symptoms and other side effects at 43% each. Leflunomide was stopped in 50% of cases due to neurological symptoms.

Conclusion:

To our knowledge, this is the first report confirming poor retention rate of oral DMARDs in a real world PsA cohort managed over 20 years. In the context of chronic disease, the median duration of treatment is short. Our analysis did not include patients who suffer from side effects but continue therapy thereby impacting treatment adherence and hence the true scale of the issue is likely higher. Though NICE guidelines stipulate the need of an adequate trial of minimum two DMARDs prior to therapy escalation, in reality these drugs are not well tolerated and thus pose a challenge to clinicians. One potential solution is earlier adoption of biological therapies, which are increasingly cost effective and have been shown to be better tolerated.

Disclosure of Interests:

Issrah Jawad: None declared, Muhammad Khurram Nisar Grant/research support from: Muhammad Nisar undertakes clinical trials and received support (including attendance at conferences, speaker fees and honoraria) from Roche, Chugai, MSD, Abbvie, Pfizer, BMS, Celgene, Novartis and UCB, Consultant of: Muhammad Nisar undertakes clinical trials and received support (including attendance at conferences, speaker fees and honoraria) from Roche, Chugai, MSD, Abbvie, Pfizer, BMS, Celgene, Novartis and UCB, Speakers bureau: Muhammad Nisar undertakes clinical trials and received support (including attendance at conferences, speaker fees and honoraria) from Roche, Chugai, MSD, Abbvie, Pfizer, BMS, Celgene, Novartis and UCB

AB0809 HOW WELL ARE BIOLOGICS RETAINED IN PSORIATIC ARTHRITIS - A REAL WORLD STUDY

Background:

Biologics have led to a sea change in the management of psoriatic arthritis (PsA) with unprecedented improvement in the signs, symptoms and radiographic damage, resulting in improvement in functionality and quality of life. However longitudinal data for their retention and tolerability is sparse.

Objectives:

Our objective was to evaluate real-world biologic therapy duration and reasons for discontinuing treatment.

Methods:

We conducted a retrospective analysis of our PsA electronic register from 1994 up to and including April 2019 at our university teaching hospital. We had access to full patient records including details on co-morbidities, drugs and disease management.

Results:

335 patients were identified with PsA. 58% of them were female with mean age of 46 yr (13-81). 113 (33.7%) patients had been treated with a biologic with 105 (93%) continuing at the time of analysis. 60 individuals were prescribed combination therapy with DMARDs. Mean age was 43.3 years (13-81) with 56% women. The biologics sample was ethnically diverse including 80% White Caucasian patients, 17% Asian and others (3%). Significant co-morbidities included cardiovascular disease (18.6%) and diabetes (4.4%). Eight different biologics were in use with adalimumab being the most prescribed (67%).

35 (30.9%) patients had stopped biologics at some point with 76 episodes of cessation. 6% of our sample had discontinued two or more biologic treatments. The mean duration before biologic therapy was discontinued was 18.2 months (8 days to 9.5 years), which was almost twice as long as the average period before discontinuing a DMARD (9.9 months). Main reasons for stopping treatment included 23% each due to GI symptoms, neurological causes, cutaneous symptoms and other side effects. The remaining 8% reported fatigue as the reason for stopping therapy.

Conclusion:

To our knowledge this is the first dedicated retrospective review of a large real world PsA cohort comparing drug survival and tolerability of biologics against DMARDs. Biologic therapies are well tolerated in psoriatic arthritis. There is no significant difference amongst various modes of action. Over a quarter of the patients discontinue the drug owing to intolerance with mean drug survival of 18 months. In contrast nearly two-thirds were intolerant of DMARDs and stopped within ten months. Thus both the rate and duration of biologic retention is significantly better than conventional DMARDs. This has significant economic impact as NICE guidelines require an adequate trial of two DMARDs for six months prior to advanced therapy. However, this approach is unlikely to be cost effective as the disease progresses whilst patients struggle with DMARDs prescription and thus delay biologics which are more likely to be tolerated and retained longer. Hence there is an urgent need to review NICE guidelines to allow earlier employment of biologics in the treatment paradigm with significant benefits to both patients and the health economy.

Disclosure of Interests:

Issrah Jawad: None declared, Muhammad Khurram Nisar Grant/research support from: Muhammad Nisar undertakes clinical trials and received support (including attendance at conferences, speaker fees and honoraria) from Roche, Chugai, MSD, Abbvie, Pfizer, BMS, Celgene, Novartis and UCB, Consultant of: Muhammad Nisar undertakes clinical trials and received support (including attendance at conferences, speaker fees and honoraria) from Roche, Chugai, MSD, Abbvie, Pfizer, BMS, Celgene, Novartis and UCB, Speakers bureau: Muhammad Nisar undertakes clinical trials and received support (including attendance at conferences, speaker fees and honoraria) from Roche, Chugai, MSD, Abbvie, Pfizer, BMS, Celgene, Novartis and UCB

Combined oral contraceptive use is associated with both improvement and worsening of mood in the different phases of the treatment cycle-A double-blind, placebo-controlled randomized trial

OBJECTIVE

Ever since the introduction of combined oral contraception (COC), one of the major reasons for discontinuing the pill use has been mood-related side effects. Moreover, women who discontinue the pill turn to less effective methods whereby the probability of an unintended conception increases. Approximately 4-10% of COC users complain of depressed mood, irritability or increased anxiety, but drug-related causality has been difficult to prove. Given the lack of randomized controlled trials in this area, we aimed to prospectively estimate the severity of adverse mood in COC users that would be as representative of general users as possible.

METHODS

This investigator-initiated, multi-center, randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled study included 202 healthy women. Women were randomized to a COC (1.5mg estradiol and 2.5mg nomegestrolacetate) or placebo for three treatment cycles. Main outcome measure was the Daily Record of Severity of Problems (DRSP), which was filled out daily during one baseline cycle and the final treatment cycle.

RESULTS

Results from 84 women in the COC group and 94 women in the placebo group were analysed. COC use was associated with small, but statistically significant, increases in mean anxiety (0.22; 95% CI: 0.07-0.37, p=0.003), irritability (0.23; 95% CI: 0.07-0.38, p=0.012), and mood swings scores (0.15; 95% CI: 0.00-0.31, p=0.047) during the intermenstrual phase, but a significant premenstrual improvement in depression (-0.33; 95% CI: -0.62 to -0.05, p=0.049). Secondary analyses showed that women with previous adverse hormonal contraceptive experience reported significantly greater mood worsening in the intermenstrual phase in comparison with healthy women, p<0.05. The proportion of women who reported a clinically relevant mood deterioration did not differ between those allocated to COC (24.1%) or placebo (17.0%), p=0.262.

CONCLUSION

COC use is associated with small but statistically significant mood side effects in the intermenstrual phase. These findings are driven by a subgroup of women who clearly suffer from COC-related side effects. However, positive mood effects are noted in the premenstrual phase and the proportion of women with clinically relevant mood worsening did not differ between treatment groups.

Pattern of left ventricular diastolic filling associated with right ventricular enlargement

Right ventricular (RV) dilatation associated with pressure overload may alter left ventricular (LV) geometry resulting in abnormal diastolic function as demonstrated by a smaller LV diastolic volume for a given LV diastolic pressure. To determine whether abnormalities in LV geometry due to RV dilatation result in abnormalities in the LV diastolic filling pattern, we obtained pulsed Doppler transmitral recordings from 23 patients with RV dilatation with RV systolic pressure estimated to be less than 40 mm Hg (group 1), 18 patients with RV dilatation and RV systolic pressures greater than or equal to 40 mm Hg (group 2) and 33 normal patients. RV systolic pressures were estimated from continuous wave Doppler peak tricuspid regurgitation velocities using the modified Bernoulli equation. Diastolic filling parameters in group 1 patients were similar to normals. In group 2 patient, increased peak atrial filling velocity (76 +/- 14 vs 57 +/- 12 cm/s, p less than 0.001), decreased peak rapid filling velocity/peak atrial filling velocity (1.1 +/- 0.4 vs 1.5 +/- 0.4, p less than 0.01), increased atrial filling fraction (41 +/- 14 vs 30 +/- 10%, p less than 0.01) and prolongation of the atrial filling period (171 +/- 47 vs 152 +/- 39 ms, p less than 0.05) were noted compared with the normal group. RV end-diastolic size and LV end-systolic shape were significantly correlated with the atrial filling fraction in group 2 patients. In patients with RV dilatation and RV systolic pressures greater than or equal to 40 mm Hg, there is increased reliance on atrial systolic contribution to the LV filling volume.