THU0147 Drug Survival of Golimumab in Japanese Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis Is Independent of Methotrexate and Prednisolone Concomitance: Results from The Multicenter Biologics Registry

Background When using biological agents, particularly tumor necrosis factor ( TNF) inhibitors, in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), the use of methotrexate (MTX) or prednisolone ( PSL) can cause considerable problems for patients because they cause adverse events. Therefore, safety would be increased if MTX and PSLcould be tapered or stopped. The objective of this report was to determine the drug retention rateof golimumab(GLM) in Japanese patients with RA and identify potential predictors associated with treatment discontinuation. Methods A prospective analysis was performed on 152 patients with RA who were treated with GLM in our multicenter biologics registry. We assessed the age, body weight, disease duration, use of pre- biological agents, Disease Activity Score 28- Erythrocyte Sedimentation Rate, and use and dose of MTX and PSLas baseline characteristics of the patients, and we compared cumulative survival among these factors. Results The overall 52 weeks drug survival rate of GLM was 71.6%. The patients with a body weight of 50kg (see Table). The use and dose of MTX and use of PSLdid not show statistical differences in drug survival rate (see Table). Conclusions In daily practice, patients with RA taper or stop their MTX or PSLuse while undergoing treatment with biological agentsif their RA disease activities are low. On the other hand, MTX with biological agents, particularly TNF inhibitors, would produce better efficacy than higher dose. Our result indicates that Japanese patients with RA receiving GLM may be able to taper or stop MTX and PSLuse, which could increase safety and raise the drug retention ratein these patients. These data would be of value in selecting biological agentsfor MTX-intolerant RA patients. Disclosure of Interest None declared