For adults with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), there is a modest reduction in the mean Disease Activity Score in 28 joints using C-reactive protein (DAS28-CRP) at three months for patients receiving tofacitinib (TOF) versus adalimumab (ADA), but there is no difference at nine months, according to a study published online June 29 in JAMA Network Open.

Claire T. Deakin, Ph.D., from OPAL Rheumatology Ltd. in Sydney, and colleagues emulated a randomized clinical trial comparing ADA and TOF in adults with RA who were new users of a biologic or targeted synthetic disease-modifying antirheumatic drug. Data were included for 842 patients: 569 treated with ADA (40 mg every 14 days) and 273 with TOF (10 mg daily).

The researchers found that at baseline, three months, and nine months, the mean DAS28-CRP was 5.3, 2.6, and 2.3, respectively, in the ADA group, and 5.3, 2.4, and 2.3, respectively, in the TOF group. The estimated average treatment effect for TOF versus ADA was −0.2 and −0.03 at three and nine months, respectively.

“The results of this observational study are consistent with clinical trial data and support the current European Alliance of Associations for Rheumatology treatment guidelines,” the authors write.

Several authors disclosed ties to the pharmaceutical industry; one author is director of Software4Specialists.

More information:
Claire T. Deakin et al, Comparative Effectiveness of Adalimumab vs Tofacitinib in Patients With Rheumatoid Arthritis in Australia, JAMA Network Open (2023). DOI: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2023.20851

Journal information:
JAMA Network Open

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