Arthritis News – 2004

Adalimumab is Safe and Efficacious as Monotherapy in Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis

In patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) who failed prior DMARD therapy, van de Putte et al (Ann Rheum Dis 62:508, 2004) evaluate the efficacy and safety of monotherapy with adalimumab (Humira). These data, originally presented at ACR, are now published.

Briefly, 544 RA patients who were inadequately responding to DMARD treatment were randomized to receive adalimumab monotherapy at 20 mg every other week, 20 mg weekly, 40 mg every other week, or 40 mg weekly. After 26 weeks, improvement was measured using ACR20, ACR50, and ACR70 criteria. See ACR highlights for specific data values.