The FDA has granted sarilumab its first pediatric indication, approving the agent to treat active, polyarticular juvenile idiopathic arthritis (pJIA) in patients who weigh at least 63 kgs.
Study Assesses Sarilumab for Polymyalgia Rheumatica
In an ACR Convergence 2022 session, Robert Spiera, MD, director of the Scleroderma, Vasculitis, and Myositis Center at the Hospital for Special Surgery, New York City, discussed the use of sarilumab as a potential glucocorticoid-sparing therapy in a phase 3 study in patients with treatment-refractory polymyalgia rheumatica (PMR), one of the most common inflammatory diseases…
FDA Approves Sarilumab for Adults with Glucocorticoid-Resistant Polymyalgia Rheumatica
On Feb. 28, 2023, the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) approved sarilumab (Kevzara) for the treatment of adults with polymyalgia rheumatica (PMR) for whom glucocorticoids have proved inadequate or who cannot tolerate a glucocorticoid taper.1,2 Sarilumab is an interleukin (IL) 6 receptor antagonist. In May 2017, the FDA initially approved the agent for the…
How to Treat Refractory Polymyalgia Rheumatica
Patients with polymyalgia rheumatica (PMR) who had relapsed while tapering glucocorticoid therapy were more likely to achieve sustained remission at one year and have a lower glucocorticoid exposure if they were treated with sarilumab (Kevzara) plus a rapid, 14-week glucocorticoid taper than if they received placebo plus a standard, 52-week glucocorticoid taper. This is according…
FDA Approves Sarilumab for the Treatment of Adults with Glucocorticoid-Resistant PMR
Sarilumab is now FDA approved to treat adults with polymyalgia rheumatica who have had an inadequate response to glucocorticoids or who cannot tolerate a glucocorticoid taper. This new indication is based on results from the multicenter, phase 3 SAPHYR trial.
Sarilumab Approved for the Treatment of Adults with Glucocorticoid-Resistant PMR
First described in 1888, polymyalgia rheumatica (PMR) is a chronic inflammatory condition that almost exclusively affects individuals older than 50.1 Until this week, no therapies for PMR had been approved by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA).2 Tuesday, Sanofi announced sarilumab (Kevzara) has been approved by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration for the…
New Findings for Polymyalgia Rheumatica & Osteoarthritis
The Plenary III Session reviewed the results of the SAPHYR trial of sarilumab in PMR patients, as well as the WE-CAN study on the impact of a community-level diet & exercise program on knee pain in patients with knee osteoarthritis.
Never Too Late: Late-Breaking Abstracts Create Excitement
EULAR 2022 (VIRTUAL)—The pace of scientific progress in research medicine is incredible and seems to only accelerate with time. Thus, the 2022 Congress of the European Alliance of Associations for Rheumatology (EULAR) session on late-breaking abstracts fittingly captured the excitement and timeliness of a number of research projects that have just recently been completed and…
Conservation of Drugs: The Impact of Acute Immunomodulator Prescribing for COVID-19 on Rheumatology Patients
In its COVID-19 treatment guidelines, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) lists several drugs commonly prescribed for patients with rheumatic conditions as potential therapies in those who are hospitalized for COVID-19 and require high-flow oxygen, noninvasive ventilation, intermittent ventilation (IMV) or extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO), as of Aug. 25, 2021, and current as this is…
Pharmacy Team Combats COVID-19 in NYC: Q&A with Mark J. Sinnett, PharmD, FASHP
The outbreak of the SARS-CoV-2 virus is disrupting patient care all over the world. In the U.S., many providers have had to adapt to new social distancing measures to care for patients, but struggles remain. Mark J. Sinnett, PharmD, FASHP, director of clinical and educational pharmacy services and director of the Center for Pharmacotherapy Research…