Association Between Patient-Reported Pain and Remission or Low Disease Activity in Patients with Rheumatoid...

Area of Science:

• Rheumatology
• Pharmacology
• Clinical Research

Background:

• Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) management involves achieving remission or low disease activity (LDA).
• Patient-reported pain is a critical outcome in RA treatment.
• Comparative effectiveness of different RA therapies on pain is essential.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the association between patient-reported pain and remission/LDA at 3 months.
• To compare pain outcomes in RA patients treated with baricitinib versus other disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs).
• To evaluate the long-term pain control achieved with baricitinib in RA patients.

Main Methods:

• The RA-BE-REAL study cohort included patients initiating baricitinib (Cohort A) or a tumor necrosis factor inhibitor (TNFi) or other mode of action (OMA) (Cohort B).
• Pain was measured using the Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) at baseline and 3, 6, 12, and 24 months.
• Clinically meaningful pain improvement was defined as ≥30%, ≥50%, and ≥70% reduction in VAS.

Main Results:

• At 3 months, patients in remission/LDA on baricitinib showed a mean change in pain VAS of -32.6 mm, compared to -27.3 mm (TNFi) and -28.0 mm (OMA).
• Nearly half of baricitinib-treated patients in remission/LDA achieved ≥70% pain relief at 3 months.
• Baricitinib demonstrated greater pain improvement across all thresholds compared to TNFi/OMA at 3 months, with sustained effects up to 24 months.

Conclusions:

• Patients with rheumatoid arthritis achieving remission or LDA while on baricitinib are more likely to attain significant pain control.
• Baricitinib offers superior pain management compared to TNFi and OMA in RA patients, particularly those in remission/LDA.
• Pain reduction is sustained up to 24 months in RA patients achieving remission/LDA with baricitinib or other treatments.