Efficacy and adverse effects of methotrexate compared with azathioprine in the antisynthetase syndrome.

ABSTRACT:

Objectives

To study the efficacy in terms of muscle strength, and corticosteroid tapering as well as the prevalence of adverse effects in patients with the antisynthetase syndrome (ASyS) treated with azathioprine (AZA) compared to those treated with methotrexate (MTX).

Methods

We compared the clinical outcomes in ASyS patients treated with AZA versus MTX including change in corticosteroid dose, strength, and creatine kinase (CK) as well as the prevalence of adverse effects.

Results

Among 169 patients with ASyS, 102 were treated at some point exclusively with either AZA or MTX (± corticosteroids). There were no significant differences in the rate of muscle strength recovery, CK decrease or corticosteroid tapering between those ASyS patients treated with MTX versus AZA.

SUBMITTER: Casal-Dominguez M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11811931 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Sep-Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature