MedPath

Treatment of Rheumatoid Arthritis With DMARDs: Predictors of Response

Registration Number
NCT03414502
Lead Sponsor
University of Nebraska
Brief Summary

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a common disease with approximately 1% prevalence. RA is also a chronic, progressive disease with no cure. Current treatment goals are to minimize pain, limit joint damage, and prevent loss of function. Drugs used to treat RA include non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS), glucocorticoids, and disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs), including biologics. Methotrexate (MTX) is the DMARD of choice in the treatment of RA, because it has been shown to be both well-tolerated and effective in achieving clinical response and slowing radiographic progression of disease. However, this drug alone results in remissions in only a small subset of patients and reliable predictors of DMARD response have yet to be identified.

This study is open-label of 16-weeks duration to identify factors that help predict clinical responses to disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARD) therapies for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) participants. All participants will receive a starting dose of DMARD medication(s) which may be adjusted by the investigator as needed. If a participant becomes intolerant of a DMARD medication, the participant will be withdrawn at the discretion of the investigator. Necessary withdrawals prior to week 16 visits will be considered end of study. Otherwise, end of study data as well as study serum will be collected at week 16. A portion of the blood collected at baseline, week 8 and week 16 for the optional addendum portion of the study is for future research and will be utilized attempting to look to detect the generation of superoxide radicals. These radicals have been shown to be associated with inflammation and may correlate with the progression of RA, which if confirmed, should decrease the levels of these radicals signaling response to treatment.

Detailed Description

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a common disease with approximately 1% prevalence. RA is also a chronic, progressive disease with no cure. Current treatment goals are to minimize pain, limit joint damage, and prevent loss of function. Drugs used to treat RA include non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS), glucocorticoids, and disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs), including biologics. Methotrexate (MTX) is the DMARD of choice in the treatment of RA, because it has been shown to be both well-tolerated and effective in achieving clinical response and slowing radiographic progression of disease. However, this drug alone results in remissions in only a small subset of patients and reliable predictors of DMARD response have yet to be identified.

Investigators have examined the discriminatory characteristics of several clinical and biologic parameters in predicting treatment response (at least 50% improvement based on American College of Rheumatology criteria), including rheumatoid factor (RF) isotypes (particularly Immunoglobulin A (IgA) and Immunoglobulin M (IgM), matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-3, human leukocyte antigen-DR isotope (HLA-DRB1) shared epitope (SE)-containing alleles, C-reactive protein, and interleukin (IL)-1.

The purpose of the study is to prospectively gather information on participants with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and their response to disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARD) therapy. Specifically, to evaluate the efficacy of DMARD therapy as defined by attaining American College of Rheumatology 50 (ACR50) response after 16 weeks of therapy and to identify predictors of DMARD response, such as genetic factors, serological factors or co-morbid conditions. A maximum of 400 rheumatoid arthritis (RA) participants will be enrolled in this 16-week, open-label study. Adult males and females will be enrolled, but RA is approximately three times more common in females.

Recruitment & Eligibility

Status
RECRUITING
Sex
All
Target Recruitment
400
Inclusion Criteria

Not provided

Exclusion Criteria

Not provided

Study & Design

Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Study Design
PARALLEL
Arm && Interventions
GroupInterventionDescription
Methotrexate TherapyMethotrexateParticipants will receive methotrexate therapy for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) treatment.
Abatacept TherapyAbataceptParticipants will receive abatacept therapy for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) treatment.
Adalimumab TherapyAdalimumabParticipants will receive adalimumab therapy for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) treatment.
Azathioprine TherapyAzathioprineParticipants will receive azathioprine therapy for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) treatment.
Barcitinib TherapyBaricitinibParticipants will receive barcitinib therapy for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) treatment.
Certolizumab TherapyCertolizumabParticipants will receive certolizumab therapy for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) treatment.
Etanercept TherapyEtanerceptParticipants will receive etanercept therapy for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) treatment.
Golimumab TherapyGolimumabParticipants will receive golimumab therapy for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) treatment.
Hydroxycholoroquine TherapyHydroxychloroquineParticipants will receive hydroxychloroquine therapy for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) treatment.
Infliximab TherapyInfliximabParticipants will receive infliximab therapy for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) treatment.
Leflunomide TherapyLeflunomideParticipants will receive leflunomide therapy for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) treatment.
Minocycline TherapyMinocyclineParticipants will receive minocycline therapy for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) treatment.
Rituximab TherapyRituximabParticipants will receive rituximab therapy for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) treatment.
Sarilumab TherapySarilumabParticipants will receive sarilumab therapy for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) treatment.
Sulfasalazine TherapySulfasalazineParticipants will receive sulfasalazine therapy for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) treatment.
Tofacitinib TherapyTofacitinibParticipants will receive tofacitinib therapy for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) treatment.
Primary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
Efficacy of Disease-modifying Antirheumatic Drugs Therapy for Rheumatoid Arthritis16 weeks

The efficacy of the disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARD) in the study will be determined using the American College of Rheumatology 50 (ACR50). This is a composite measure defined as both improvement of 50% in the number of tender and number of swollen joints, and a 50% improvement in three of the following five criteria: patient global assessment, physician global assessment, functional ability measure \[most often Health Assessment Questionnaire (HAQ)\], visual analog pain scale, and erythrocyte sedimentation rate or C-reactive protein (CRP).

Secondary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
Genetic factors as Predictors of Disease-modifying Antirheumatic Drugs Response16 weeks

Based on American College of Rheumatology 50 (ACR50) composite measure after 16 weeks of treatment, the number of participants will be determined that have genetic factors, such as the shared epitope, that demonstrate a 50% improvement in the number of tender and swollen joints, and a 50% improvement in three of five criteria: patient global assessment, physician global assessment, functional ability measure (most often Health Assessment Questionnaire/HAQ), visual analog pain scale and erythrocyte sedimentation rate or C-reactive protein (CRP).

Serological Factors as Predictors of Disease-modifying Antirheumatic Drugs Response16 weeks

Based on American College of Rheumatology 50 (ACR50) composite measure after 16 weeks of treatment, the number of participants will be determined that have serological factors, such as cyclic citrullinated peptide (CCP) isotypes, that demonstrate a 50% improvement in the number of tender and swollen joints, and a 50% improvement in three of five criteria: patient global assessment, physician global assessment, functional ability measure (most often Health Assessment Questionnaire/HAQ), visual analog pain scale and erythrocyte sedimentation rate or C-reactive protein (CRP).

Co-morbid Conditions as Predictors of Disease-modifying Antirheumatic Drugs Response16 weeks

Based on American College of Rheumatology 50 (ACR50) composite measure after 16 weeks of treatment, the number of participants will be determined that have co-morbid conditions, such as periodontal disease, that demonstrate a 50% improvement in the number of tender and swollen joints, and a 50% improvement in three of five criteria: patient global assessment, physician global assessment, functional ability measure (most often Health Assessment Questionnaire/HAQ), visual analog pain scale and erythrocyte sedimentation rate or C-reactive protein (CRP).

Trial Locations

Locations (1)

University of Nebraska Medical Center

🇺🇸

Omaha, Nebraska, United States

© Copyright 2025. All Rights Reserved by MedPath