25 mg etanercept once weekly in rheumatoid arthritis and spondylarthropathy.
OBJECTIVE
To assess the clinical results at 6 months of etanercept 25 mg once weekly (half-dose), and etanercept 25 mg twice weekly (full-dose), in patients with rheumatoid arthritis or spondylarthropathy.


METHODS
Case records of all patients treated by etanercept for at least 6 months in the same rheumatology unit were retrospectively studied, to assess the mean values of DAS-28 and BASDAI, just before (J0), and after 6 months (M6) of treatment, in patients with rheumatoid arthritis or spondylarthropathy treated with etanercept 25 mg given either once or twice weekly.


RESULTS
112 patients had been treated for at least 6 months (44 at half-dose, and 68 at full-dose). Values of DAS-28 or BASDAI both at J0 and M6 were available in 92 patients. DAS-28 dramatically improved both in the half-dose group (from 5.2+/-0.8 to 3.5+/-0.8) and in the full-dose group (from 5.5+/-1.0 to 4.1+/-1.0). BASDAI also strikingly improved both in the half-dose group (from 60+/-13 to 25+/-18), and in the full-dose group (from 58+/-15 to 37+/-23).


CONCLUSIONS
Although this was not a double-blind, prospective, randomised study, the strong improvement noticed in the half-dose group suggests that etanercept 25 mg once a week can induce major clinical and biological relief in some patients with RA or spondylarthropathy.
Berthelot
Jean-Marie
JM
Service de Rhumatologie, Hôtel-Dieu, CHU Nantes, Nantes Cedex 01, France. jeanmarie.berthelot@chu-nantes.fr <jeanmarie.berthelot@chu-nantes.fr>
Varin
Stéphane
S
Cormier
Grégoire
G
Tortellier
Laetitia
L
Guillot
Pascale
P
Glemarec
Joëlle
J
Maugars
Yves
Y
D018501:Antirheumatic Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D001172:Arthritis, Rheumatoid / Q000188:drug therapy*; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D004334:Drug Administration Schedule; D000068800:Etanercept; D006801:Humans; D007074:Immunoglobulin G / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D008875:Middle Aged; D018124:Receptors, Tumor Necrosis Factor / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D025242:Spondylarthropathies / Q000188:drug therapy*; D016896:Treatment Outcome
D018501:Antirheumatic Agents; D007074:Immunoglobulin G; D018124:Receptors, Tumor Necrosis Factor; D000068800:Etanercept