Johns Hopkins Arthritis Center
Reactivation of latent tuberculosis is a recognized risk of TNF inhibitor use. While there has been circumstantial evidence of greater risk with the monoclonal antibody TNF inhibitors (e.g. infliximab and adalimumab) compared with decoy receptor TNF inhibitors (e.g. etanercept), there have been few direct comparisons. Here, Dixon et al (Ann Rheum Dis 2010; 69: 522-528) [...]
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration released an early communication regarding a plan to investigate a possible association between TNF inhibitor therapy and cancer in children receiving these agents for treatment of juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) and Crohn’s disease.
Older person with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) make up an increasing proportion of those treated with biologic disease modifying anti-rheumatic agents (DMARDs). The safety of these agents may differ for this subgroup of older RA patients, yet effects have generally not been selectively studied in this population.
