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4CPS-111 Persistence of Janus kinase inhibitor therapy in patients with rheumatoid arthritis

ejhpharm · 2026-03-18 · canonical JSON source

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Background and Importance Janus kinase inhibitors (JAKi), such as baricitinib (BAR) and tofacitinib (TOF), are oral therapeutic options for rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Evaluating treatment persistence, defined as the duration patients remain on therapy without discontinuation, is essential to understanding real-world effectiveness and long-term tolerability.Aim and Objectives To evaluate the persistence of BAR and TOF in patients with RA in routine clinical practice.Material and Methods A retrospective observational study was conducted including all patients with RA who received BAR or TOF and were on treatment at any point until March 2025. Follow-up continued until March 2025 or treatment discontinuation.Data collected from electronic medical records: age, sex, previous treatment with disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs) -both conventional (csDMARDs) and biological (bDMARDs)-, concomitant corticosteroids, duration of JAKi therapy, treatment start and end dates and reasons for discontinuation.Categorical variables were expressed as percentages; continuous variables as median with interquartile range. Treatment persistence was analysed using the Kaplan–Meier method.Results 53 patients were included: BAR (n=36) and TOF (n=17); women: 75% and 82% of each group, respectively. Median ages (years): BAR 61 (24-80), TOF 56 (21-83). All received csDMARDs. Previous bDMARDs: BAR 78%, TOF 94%. Concomitant corticosteroid therapy: BAR 68%, TOF 82%.Median treatment duration (months): BAR 38 (2–79), TOF 20 (4–79).The cumulative probability of treatment persistence for BAR and TOF was 89% (95% CI 79-99) and 82% (95% CI 64-100) at 12 months and 78% (95% CI 65-92) and 75% (95% CI 54-96) at 24 months, respectively.During the study, 18 patients (34%) discontinued therapy: 11 (61%) on BAR (seven due to lack of efficacy, four adverse events) and seven (39%) on TOF (all due to inefficacy).Conclusion and Relevance Both JAKi showed high persistence rates during the first 24 months of therapy. BAR demonstrated numerically greater persistence than TOF, although differences were not statistically significant. Lack of efficacy was the main reason for discontinuation.These findings support the real-world effectiveness and tolerability of JAKi in RA, highlighting the importance of persistence as an indicator of long-term treatment success.Conflict of Interest No conflict of interest