This article is more than 5 years old. Information may no longer be current.
Patients with ankylosing spondylitis, limited resources may improve with on-demand infliximab
Patients with ankylosing spondylitis who received induction doses of infliximab followed by recurrent dosing in the presence of disease flare reported improvements in physical, mental and quality of life scores, according to a recently published report from India.
Twenty-five patients with ankylosing spondylitis were treated with infliximab for 3 years beginning with an induction dose regimen of 5 mg/kg at weeks 0, 2, 6 and 8 weeks. Patients were evaluated monthly. A maintenance dose was administered in the presence of a Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Disease Activity Index (BASDAI) score greater than 4. The mean duration of treatment between two maintenance doses was 28.87 weeks, compared to 8 weeks under a standard care protocol.
In addition to BASDAI, patients were assessed using the Short Form-36 (SF-36) Physical Component Summary (PCS), the SF-36 Mental Component Summary (MCS) and the Ankylosing Spondylitis Quality of Life (ASQoL) score at baseline, 6 weeks and at 3 years after the last maintenance dose was administered. The mean PCS score was 22.23 at baseline compared to 49.65 at week 6 and 50.42 after the last maintenance dose. The mean MSC score was 24.94 at baseline, 52.98 at week 6 and 54.16 after the last maintenance dose. The ASQoL score was reduced by 11.48 points after week 6 and by 11.64 after the last maintenance dose.
The study was an attempt to assess effectiveness and quality of life under a lower cost regimen, according to the researchers.
“Although no analysis for cost-effectiveness of infliximab was carried out in this study, provision of treatment on-demand with less frequent infusions may suggest that the cost of treatment in this study was comparatively less,” the researchers wrote. “Hence, in a resource-limited country, this regimen may be a very helpful option for patients with AS.” – by Shirley Pulawski
Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.