July 1, 2002 Etanercept was significantly better than methotrexate in patients with early but aggressive rheumatoid arthritis (RA), according to results of a double-blind, randomized trial reported in the June issue of Arthritis & Rheumatism.
This study is the largest and longest trial to date comparing two continuous monotherapies in patients with early RA.
“Etanercept is a fully human fusion protein that inhibits tumor necrosis factor and the subsequent inflammatory cytokine cascade,” write Mark C. Genovese, from Stanford University in California, and colleagues.
“Etanercept as monotherapy was safe and was superior to methotrexate in reducing disease activity, arresting structural damage and decreasing disability over two years in patients with early, aggressive RA.” In the Enbrel ERA (early RA) trial, 632 patients with early, active RA were randomized to treatment with twice weekly subcutaneous etanercept, 10 mg or 25 mg, or weekly oral methotrexate (mean dosage, 19 mg/week) for at least one year, followed by an additional year of open-label treatment with the same agent.
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