Upadacitinib Proves Effective, Safe for Active Ankylosing Spondylitis

Upadacitinib 15 mg proved to be more effective than placebo in treating patients with active ankylosing spondylitis (AS) with an inadequate response to biological disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (bDMARDs). Researchers published their findings in Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases.

The study population included 420 randomly selected adults with active AS. The investigators compared upadacitinib 15 mg (n=211) vs placebo (n=209) over 14 weeks. Patients treated with upadacitinib showed significantly greater improvement in symptoms than patients treated with placebo (45% vs 18%). No malignancies, major adverse cardiovascular abnormalities, or deaths were seen among patients treated with upadacitinib. Overall, there were no new safety risks.

“Upadacitinib 15 mg once daily significantly improved the signs and symptoms of active AS in bDMARD-IR patients after 14 weeks of treatment compared with placebo,” the authors wrote. “Treatment with upadacitinib was generally safe and well tolerated.”

—Priyam Vora

Reference

Heijde D, Baraliakos X, Sieper J, et al. Efficacy and safety of upadacitinib for active ankylosing spondylitis refractory to biological therapy: a double-blind, randomised, placebo-controlled phase 3 trial. Ann Rheum Dis. 2022; Published online July 4 2022; doi: 10.1136/ard-2022-222608