Rheumatoid Arthritis
Conditions
Keywords
Rheumatoid Arthritis, Anti-TNF, Ultrasound, Synovial histomorphology, Ectopic Lymphoneogenesis
Brief summary
This study will be an open label observational prospective study assessing the clinical efficacy of antiTNFα therapy and the alteration/impact on the synovial tissue, with specific regard to lymphoid aggregation, over a period of 12 months in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is one of the most important chronic inflammatory disorders in the UK. It affects approximately 1% of adults and causes considerable morbidity, substantially reduces quality of life and has a significant mortality. It results in large direct medical costs as well as extensive indirect social costs. Despite the significant therapeutic progress following the introduction of antiTNFα, a cure for RA is still elusive. At present the reasons for the variation in clinical response are not known. The main aim of this study is to test the hypothesis that there are distinct molecular and cellular phenotypes present within the synovial tissue that define specific disease subsets and provide characteristic prognostic implications. In particular, the aim is to assess the relationship between the presence of ectopic lymphoneogenesis (ELN) within the rheumatoid synovial membrane and response to antiTNFα therapy.
Interventions
PROCEDURESynovial biopsy
Ultrasound guided synovial biopsy of inflamed joint
DRUGAnti-TNF therapy
Therapy will include, but not limited to Etanercept, Certolizumab Pegol, Adalimumab and Infliximab
Sponsors
Barts & The London NHS Trust
Study design
Observational model
COHORT
Time perspective
PROSPECTIVE
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
18 Years to No maximum
Healthy volunteers
No
Inclusion criteria
* Men and women ≥ 18 and ≤ 75 years of age, with RA as defined by the 1987 revised ACR classification criteria. * Patients must fulfill the National Institute for Clinical Excellence guidelines for TNF Blocking Therapy in RA. * Patients must be on MTX for at least 4 months, with a stable dose of 7.525 mg/week for a minimum of 4 weeks. * Men and women of childbearing potential must use adequate birth control measures (eg, abstinence, oral contraceptives, intrauterine device, barrier method with spermicide, or surgical sterilization) for the duration of the study. * Patients must be able to adhere to the study visit schedule. * Patients must be capable of giving informed consent and the consent must be obtained prior to any screening procedures. * Must have a chest Xray within 3 months prior to commencement of antiTNFα with no evidence of malignancy, infection or fibrosis.
Exclusion criteria
* Women who are pregnant or breast feeding. * Use of any investigational drug within 1 month prior to screening or within 5 half-lives of the investigational agent, whichever is longer. * Previous use of antiTNF biologics. * Treatment with any other therapeutic agent targeted at reducing TNF (eg, pentoxifylline, thalidomide, etc.) within 3 months of screening. * Serious infections (such as, HIV, HBV, pneumonia or pyelonephritis) in the previous 3 months. Less serious infections (such as acute upper respiratory tract infection \[colds\] or simple urinary tract infection) need not be considered exclusions at the discretion of the investigator. * Have active TB or have evidence of latent TB (old or latent TB on chest Xray, without adequate therapy for TB initiated prior to first dose of study drug). Also excluded are patients with evidence of an old or latent TB infection without documented adequate therapy. * Presence of a transplanted organ (with the exception of a corneal transplant \>3 months prior to screening). * Malignancy within the past 5 years (except for squamous or basal cell carcinoma of the skin that has been treated with no evidence of recurrence). * History of lymphoproliferative disease including lymphoma, or signs and symptoms suggestive of possible lymphoproliferative disease, such as lymphadenopathy of unusual size or location (such as nodes in the posterior triangle of the neck, infraclavicular, epitrochlear, or periaortic areas), or splenomegaly. * Known recent substance abuse (drug or alcohol). * Poor tolerability of venepuncture required blood sampling during the study period.
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame |
|---|---|
| Correlation of change in synovial ectopic lymphoneogenesis with EULAR response criteria using DAS28 | Baseline and 12 months |
Secondary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Disability and health status assessed using the HAQ questionnaire | Baseline and 12 months | — |
| X-ray progression | Baseline and 12 months | Progression of x-ray damage of hand and feet using modified van der heidje / sharp score |
| Change in synovial histomorphology with treatment | baseline and 3 months | — |
| Correlation of peripheral blood lymphocytes including, Treg markers and, B cell subsets | baseline and 12 months | — |
Countries
United Kingdom
Outcome results
None listed