Real-world evidence on individual tapering of DMARD in patients with RA

Key clinical point: Individual tapering of disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARD) might be feasible in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) in sustained remission for more than 6 months.

Major finding: The risks for flare (adjusted hazard ratio [aHR] 0.88; 95% CI 0.59-1.30) and loss of remission (aHR 1.04; 95% CI 0.73-1.49) were not significantly different among patients who tapered vs continued DMARD. The clinical disease activity index showed a minor and nonsignificant increase at 12 months in patients who tapered vs continued DMARD (1.80 vs 0.91 units; P  =  .076).

Study details: Findings are from an analysis of a prospective cohort of 437 patients with RA in sustained remission for ≥6 months who either tapered or continued DMARD.

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Disclosures: This study was supported by the Federal Joint Committee, Germany. All authors reported receiving grants from the Federal Joint Committee. E Edelmann reported receiving personal fees from various sources. F Verheyen contributed as an employee of Techniker Krankenkasse.

Source: Birkner B et al. Patient-individual tapering of DMARDs in rheumatoid arthritis patients in a real-world setting. Rheumatology (Oxford). 2022 (Aug 18). Doi:  10.1093/rheumatology/keac472