Literature Highlights - August 2023
AURORA 2, Voclosporin, Lupus Nephritis, BLISS-LN, Belimumab
Find coverage of the latest original articles on Lupus, focusing on those with data on therapeutic interventions and those that have clinical impact.
This activity is supported by an educational grant from AstraZeneca.
AURORA 2, Voclosporin, Lupus Nephritis, BLISS-LN, Belimumab
Nephrol Dial Transplant. 2023 doi: 10.1093/ndt/gfad167 Epub ahead of print.
These data highlight the consistent benefit of belimumab versus placebo, combined with standard therapy, on kidney outcomes in both newly diagnosed and relapsed patients, and regardless of the use of GC pulses at induction.
Ann Rheum Dis. 2023 DOI: 10.1136/ard-2023-224242 Epub ahead of print
Data revealed a renoprotective effect of SGLT2 inhibitors by reducing proteinuria and preserving renal function in the murine MRL/lpr lupus model.
Arthritis Rheumatol. 2023 DOI: 10.1002/art.42657 Epub ahead of print
AURORA 2 demonstrated the safety and tolerability of continued administration of voclosporin over 3 years of treatment in patients with LN.
Front Immunol. 2023 14:1200732 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1200732
Using data from a longitudinal cohort of SLE patients of Chinese origin, the authors identified risk factors for LN and developed a prediction model, RIFLE-LN, which demonstrated good performance in a testing cohort of 270 patients.
Arthritis Care Res (Hoboken). 2023 Jul;75(7):1399–1408 DOI: 10.1002/acr.25007
Pooled analysis of data from the AURA-LV phase 2 and AURORA 1 phase 3 trials of voclosporin in patients with active LN demonstrated that significantly more patients achieved a complete renal response at 1 year in the voclosporin than the control group (p<0.0001), with no observation of new safety signals.
J Rheumatol. 2023 Jun 15:jrheum.2023-0060 DOI: 10.3899/jrheum.2023-0060 Epub ahead of print
An analysis of the California Lupus Epidemiology Study cohort demonstrated that more than a quarter of participants reported at least one medication cost concern, which was associated with worse patient-reported outcomes. These results reveal a potentially modifiable risk factor for poor outcomes rooted in the unaffordability of lupus care.
Lancet Rheumatol 2023;5:e284–92 doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/S2665-9913(23)00091-7
Data from a large prospective registry (BILAG-BR) highlight that, compared with standard of care, the serious infection risk was similar between rituximab and belimumab.
Arthritis Rheumatol. 2023 doi: 10.1002/art.42557. Epub ahead of print.
This phase II study of BI 655064 in patients with active LN did not meet the primary endpoint of CRR at Week 52, however, post-hoc analyses suggest a potential benefit of BI 655064 180 mg in patients with active LN.
doi: 10.1093/rheumatology/kead253 Epub ahead of print
The protection conferred from belimumab against renal flare development in patients treated for extra-renal SLE appears enhanced when administered along with antimalarials (AMA).
Lupus Sci Med. 2023;10(1):e000932 doi: 10.1136/lupus-2023-000932
LN histological activity takes months to years to resolve, providing a rationale for the need of long-term, well-tolerated maintenance immunosuppression.