Key clinical point: Patients with psoriatic arthritis (PsA) reported a low cumulative incidence of opportunistic infections (OIs) after treatment with either biologic (bDMARDs) or targeted synthetic (tsDMARDs) disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs.
Major finding : The cumulative incidence of OIs was <3% when stratified by the mechanism of action: Janus Kinase inhibitors (2.72%; 95% CI, 1.05%-5.04%), anti-interleukin (IL)-17s (1.18%; 95% CI, 0.60%-1.90%), anti-IL-23s (0.24%; 95% CI, 0.04%-0.54%), and anti-tumor necrosis factors (0.01%; 95% CI, 0.00%-0.21%).
Study details : Findings are from a meta-analysis of 47 randomized controlled trials and 26 follow-up extension studies including patients with PsA who were assigned to receive ≥1 dose of bDMARD or tsDMARD (n=11,790) or placebo (n=6,425) during the placebo-controlled period; 17,197 patients received ≥1 dose of bDMARD or tsDMARD considering the extension period.
Disclosures: This study did not report any funding source. The authors declared no conflicts of interest.
Source: Vassilopoulos A et al. The incidence of opportunistic infections in patients with psoriatic arthritis treated with biologic and targeted synthetic agents: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Front. Pharmacol. 2022;13:992713 (Oct 5). Doi: 10.3389/fphar.2022.992713.