Key clinical point: Compared with biological disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (bDMARD), tofacitinib increased the risk for serious infections (SI) in older patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA; age ≥ 69 years).
Major finding: The risk for non-fatal SI in the tofacitinib vs bDMARD treatment group was ~2 times higher in patients age 69 years (hazard ratio [HR] ~2.00; 95% CI ~1.02 to ~4.00) and ~2.8 times higher in those age ≥ 76 years (HR ~2.8; 95% CI 1.3 to ~6.4).
Study details: This observational cohort study included 1687 patients with RA enrolled in 2238 different treatment courses (TC), of which 345 and 1893 TC involved tofacitinib and bDMARD, respectively.
Disclosures: This study was supported by Pfizer. Several authors declared receiving speaker fees, consulting fees, research grants, or conference expenditures from or having other ties with various sources, including Pfizer.
Source: Riek M et al. Serious infection risk of tofacitinib compared to biologics in patients with rheumatoid arthritis treated in routine clinical care. Sci Rep. 2023;13:17776 (Oct 18). doi: 10.1038/s41598-023-44841-w