Publications
Find coverage of the latest original articles on Lupus, focusing on those with data on therapeutic interventions and those that have clinical impact.
December 2022
A Randomized, Placebo-Controlled Phase III Extension Trial of the Long-Term Safety and Tolerability of Anifrolumab in Active Systemic Lupus Erythematosus
Arthritis Rheumatol. 2022. Epub ahead of print doi: 10.1002/art.42392
Long-term extension study shows an acceptable long-term safety profile of anifrolumab in SLE, in addition to sustained improvements in disease activity and reduction in glucocorticoid use.
November 2022
Trial of Anti-BDCA2 Antibody Litifilimab for Systemic Lupus Erythematosus
N Engl J Med. 2022;387(10):894–904 doi: 10.1056/NEJMoa2118025
Phase 2 study, in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus, shows that litifilimab is associated with a greater reduction from baseline in the number of swollen and tender joints than placebo, over a period of 24 weeks.
September 2022
Trial of Anti-BDCA2 Antibody Litifilimab for Cutaneous Lupus Erythematosus
N Engl J Med. 2022;387(4):321–331 doi: 10.1056/NEJMoa2118024
Phase II study, in patients with active cutaneous lupus erythematosus, shows that litifilimab improved scores on a measure of skin disease activity, over 16 weeks, compared to placebo.
Remission and low disease activity (LDA) prevent damage accrual in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus: results from the Systemic Lupus International Collaborating Clinics (SLICC) inception cohort
Ann Rheum Dis. 2022. Epub ahead of print doi: 10.1136/ard-2022-222487.
Large multinational, multiethnic cohort, study highlights the importance of treating-to-target in SLE.
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July 2022
Phase 3, multicentre, randomised, placebo-controlled study evaluating the efficacy and safety of ustekinumab in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus
van Vollenhoven RF, et al. Ann Rheum Dis. 2022. Epub ahead of print. doi:10.1136/ard-2022-222858.
Phase 3 study evaluating the efficacy and safety of ustekinumab in patients with active SLE, despite receiving standard-of-care, does not achieve primary and key secondary endpoints.
June 2022
Concordance and discordance in SLE clinical trial outcome measures: analysis of three anifrolumab phase 2/3 trials
Ann Rheum Dis 2022;81:962–969 doi: 10.1136/annrheumdis-2021-221847
Bruce, et al. investigate the degree of concordance between BICLA and SRI-4 response across anifrolumab trials (TULIP-1, TULIP-2 and MUSE) in order to better understand drivers of discrepant systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) trial results.
May 2022
Anifrolumab efficacy and safety by type I interferon gene signature and clinical subgroups in patients with SLE: post hoc analysis of pooled data from two phase III trials
Ann Rheum Dis. 2022; 0:1–11. doi: 10.1136/annrheumdis-2021-221425
IFN-I signalling plays a key role in SLE pathogenesis, and anifrolumab has demonstrated inhibitory effects on IFN-I signalling in patients with SLE. Vital, et al. characterised efficacy and safety of anifrolumab in patients with moderate-to-severe SLE based on interferon gene signature, demographic and clinical subgroups using data pooled from the Phase III TULIP-1 and -2 trials.
March 2022
Clinical meaningfulness of a British Isles Lupus Assessment Group-based Composite Lupus Assessment response in terms of patient-reported outcomes in moderate to severe systemic lupus erythematosus: a post-hoc analysis of the phase 3 TULIP-1 and TULIP-2 trials of anifrolumab
Lancet Rheumatol 2022;4:e198–207
In patients with moderate-to-severe SLE, British Isles Lupus Assessment Group-based Composite Lupus Assessment (BICLA) responders report improvements in disease activity, health-related quality of life, fatigue, and pain.
February 2022
Evaluating the Construct of Damage in Systemic Lupus Erythematosus
Arthritis Care Res (Hoboken). 2021 Dec 28. Epub ahead of print
Study identifies shifts in the paradigm of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) damage and develops a unifying conceptual framework to inform development of a revised SLE Damage Index (SDI).
Shifts in the concept of damage in SLE have occurred with new insights into disease manifestations, diagnostics, and therapy. Consequently, there is a need for a revised SDI, to incorporate additional factors that contribute to damage accrual.
Flares after Hydroxychloroquine Reduction or Discontinuation: Results from the Systemic Lupus International Collaborating Clinics (SLICC) Inception Cohort
Ann Rheum Dis. 2021:annrheumdis-2021-221295. Epub ahead of print
Evidence suggests that hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) reduction/withdrawal may be safe in some stable patients, but in other settings it may be associated with disease flare. Almeida-Brasil, et al. sought to evaluate SLE flares following HCQ reduction or discontinuation versus HCQ maintenance. Their data suggest that maintaining HCQ was associated with a lower flare risk than reduction or discontinuation, even in patients with low disease activity or remission.