Combined Conventional Synthetic Disease Modifying Therapy vs. Infliximab for Rheumatoid Arthritis: Emulating a Randomized Trial in Observational Data.

ABSTRACT: Observational studies are often considered unreliable for evaluating relative treatment effectiveness, but it has been suggested that following target trial protocols could reduce bias. Using observational data from patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) in the Swedish Rheumatology Quality Register (SRQ), between 2006 and 2020, we emulated the protocol of the Swedish Farmacotherapy trial (SWEFOT) and compared the results. SWEFOT was a pragmatic trial nested in SRQ, between 2002 and 2005, where methotrexate (MTX) insufficient responders were randomized to receive additional infliximab or sulfasalazine (SSZ) + hydroxychloroquine (HCQ). Patients with RA initiating infliximab (N = 313) or SSZ + HCQ (N = 196) after MTX were identified in SRQ and the Prescribed Drugs Register, mimicking the SWE

SUBMITTER: Barbulescu A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9540175 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature