| 1. |
- Ebbevi, David, et al.
(författare)
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Value-based health care for chronic care : aligning outcomes measurement with the patient perspective
- 2016
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Ingår i: Quality Management in Health Care. - : Lippincott, Williams & Wilkins. - 1063-8628 .- 1063-8628 .- 1550-5154. ; 25:4, s. 203-212
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: Value-based health care is increasingly used for developing health care services by relating patient outcomes to costs. A hierarchical value scorecard for creating outcome measurements has been suggested: The 3-Tier model. The objective of this study was to test the model against the patient's view of value in a chronic care setting. Methods: Semistructured interviews with 22 persons with rheumatoid arthritis were conducted, transcribed, and analyzed using qualitative content analysis. Themes were extracted, and the model was critically applied and revised. Results: The study validates existing dimensions in the model but suggests adding information, social health, predictability, and continuity to make it more useful and representative of patients' preferences. Conclusion: Although the model aims to focus on outcomes relevant to patients, it lacks dimensions important to individuals with rheumatoid arthritis. The data illustrate difficulties in finding patients' preferred outcomes and imply tactics for arriving at meaningful measurements.
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| 2. |
- Einarsson, Jon Thorkell, et al.
(författare)
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Prevalence of sustained remission in rheumatoid arthritis: impact of criteria sets and disease duration, a Nationwide Study in Sweden
- 2019
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Ingår i: Rheumatology (Oxford, England). - : Oxford University Press (OUP). - 1462-0332 .- 1462-0324. ; 58:2, s. 227-236
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Objectives The aims of this national study in Sweden of patients with RA were to: examine the prevalence of sustained remission (SR), that is, remission lasting for at least 6 months; compare the prevalence of SR in patients with early RA and established RA; study the timing of onset of and time spent in SR; and study possible predictors of SR. Methods Adult patients with RA included in the Swedish Rheumatology Quality registry were studied. The registry was searched for patients fulfilling remission criteria: DAS28-ESR, Clinical Disease Activity Index (CDAI), Simplified Disease Activity Index (SDAI) and ACR/EULAR remission for at least 6 months. Early RA was defined as symptom duration ⩽6 months at inclusion in the Swedish Rheumatology Quality. Results Of 29 084 patients, 12 193 (41.9%) reached DAS28 SR at some time point during follow-up compared with 6445 (22.2%), 6199 (21.3%) and 5087 (17.5%) for CDAI, SDAI and ACR/EULAR SR, respectively. SR was more common in early RA (P < 0.001). The median time from symptom onset to SR was 1.9, 2.4, 2.4 and 2.5 years according to DAS28, CDAI, SDAI and ACR/EULAR criteria, respectively. Lower age, male sex and milder disease characteristics were associated with SR. Conclusion The majority of patients in this nationwide study never reached SR. Patients with early RA are more likely to reach SR than patients with established RA.
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| 3. |
- Eriksson, Jonas, et al.
(författare)
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Cost-effectiveness of infliximab versus conventional combination treatment in methotrexate-refractory early rheumatoid arthritis: 2-year results of the register-enriched randomised controlled SWEFOT trial.
- 2015
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Ingår i: Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases. - : BMJ. - 1468-2060 .- 0003-4967. ; 74:6, s. 1094-1101
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- OBJECTIVE: To estimate the incremental cost-effectiveness of infliximab versus conventional combination treatment over 21 months in patients with methotrexate-refractory early rheumatoid arthritis. METHODS: In this multicentre, two-arm, parallel, randomised, active-controlled, open-label trial, rheumatoid arthritis patients with <1 year symptom duration were recruited from 15 rheumatology clinics in Sweden between October 2002 and December 2005. After 3-4 months of methotrexate monotherapy, patients not achieving low disease activity were randomised to addition of infliximab or sulfasalazine+hydroxychloroquine (conventional treatment group). Costs of drugs, healthcare use, and productivity losses were retrieved from nationwide registers, while EuroQol 5-Dimensions utility was collected quarterly. RESULTS: Of 487 patients initially enrolled, 128 and 130 were randomised to infliximab and conventional treatment, respectively. The infliximab group accumulated higher drug and healthcare costs (€27 487 vs €10 364; adjusted mean difference €16 956 (95% CI 14 647 to 19 162)), while productivity losses did not differ (€33 804 vs €29 220; €3961 (95% CI -3986 to 11 850)), resulting in higher societal cost compared to the conventional group (€61 291 vs €39 584; €20 916 (95% CI 12 800 to 28 660)). Mean accumulated quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs) did not differ (1.10 vs 1.12; adjusted mean difference favouring infliximab treatment 0.01 (95% CI -0.07 to 0.08)). The incremental cost-effectiveness ratios for the infliximab versus conventional treatment strategy were €2 404 197/QALY from the societal perspective and €1 948 919/QALY from the healthcare perspective. CONCLUSIONS: In early, methotrexate-refractory rheumatoid arthritis, a treatment strategy commencing with addition of infliximab, as compared to sulfasalazine+hydroxychloroquine, was not cost-effective over 21 months at willingness to pay levels generally considered acceptable. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: NCT00764725.
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| 4. |
- Eriksson, Jonas K., et al.
(författare)
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Biological vs Conventional Combination Treatment and Work Loss in Early Rheumatoid Arthritis A Randomized Trial
- 2013
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Ingår i: JAMA Internal Medicine. - : American Medical Association (AMA). - 2168-6114 .- 2168-6106. ; 173:15, s. 1407-1414
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- IMPORTANCE The introduction of biological tumor necrosis factor inhibitors has improved the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) but at a substantial cost. These drugs have been shown to lead to superior radiological outcomes compared with a combination of conventional disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs over 2 years. OBJECTIVE To investigate whether radiological superiority translates into better work loss outcomes. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS Multicenter, 2-arm, parallel, randomized, active-controlled, open-label trial. Patients with early RA (symptom duration <1 year) were recruited from 15 rheumatology clinics in Sweden from October 1, 2002, through December 31, 2005. The study population was restricted to working-age patients (aged <63 years). INTERVENTIONS Patients who did not achieve low disease activity after 3 to 4 months of methotrexate therapy were randomized to receive additional biological treatment with infliximab or conventional combination treatment with sulfasalazine plus hydroxychloroquine. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES Monthly sick leave and disability pension days 21 months after randomization retrieved from the nationwide Swedish Social Insurance Office register. Main analyses were by intention to treat, including all patients, and adjusted for baseline sick leave and disability pension. RESULTS Of 204 eligible patients, 105 were randomized to biological and 99 to conventional treatment. Seven patients in the biological and 4 in the conventional treatment group never received the study drug, and 72 and 52 patients, respectively, followed the study per protocol for 21 months. The baseline mean (SD) work loss was 17 (13) d/mo (median, 16 d/mo) in both groups (mean difference, 0.6 d/mo; 95% CI, -3.0 to 3.9). The mean changes in work loss at 21 months were -4.9 d/mo in the biological and -6.2 d/mo in the conventional treatment group (adjusted mean difference, 1.6 d/mo; 95% CI, -1.2 to 4.4). Including only patients receiving at least 1 dose of assigned treatment, the adjusted mean difference was 1.5 d/mo (95% CI, -1.5 to 4.4), and in per-protocol analysis the adjusted mean difference was 0.3 d/mo (95% CI, -2.8 to 3.8). CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE The radiological superiority of biological compared with conventional combination therapy did not translate into better work loss outcomes in patients with early RA who had experienced an insufficient response to methotrexate.
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| 5. |
- Eriksson, Jonas K, et al.
(författare)
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Infliximab Versus Conventional Combination Treatment and Seven-Year Work Loss in Early Rheumatoid Arthritis : Results of a Randomized Swedish Trial
- 2016
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Ingår i: Arthritis Care and Research. - : Wiley. - 2151-4658 .- 2151-464X. ; 68:12, s. 1758-1766
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Objective To compare long-term work loss in methotrexate-refractory early rheumatoid arthritis (RA) randomized to addition of infliximab or conventional combination treatment. Methods Multicentre, two-arm, parallel, randomized, active-controlled, open-label trial. RA patients with <1y symptom duration were recruited from 15 rheumatology clinics in Sweden between 2002-2005. Patients who did not achieve low disease activity after 3-4 months methotrexate therapy were randomized to addition of infliximab or conventional combination treatment with sulfasalazine+hydroxychloroquine. Yearly sick leave and disability pension days over 7 years after randomization were retrieved from nationwide registers kept by the Swedish Social Insurance Agency. Results Of 210 working age patients, 109 were randomized to infliximab (mean age=48.4y, 73% women) and 101 to conventional treatment (48.7y, 77%). The year before randomization the mean number of annual work days lost was 127 in the infliximab arm and 118 in the conventional treatment group (mean difference, 9; 95%CI, -23 to 39). Compared to the year before randomization, the mean changes at 7 years were -25 days in the infliximab and -26 days in the conventional treatment group (adjusted mean difference, 10; 95%CI, -25 to 46). The mean cumulative work loss days was 846 in the infliximab group and 701 in the conventional treatment group (adjusted mean difference, 104; 95%CI, -56 to 284). Conclusions Long-term work loss improved significantly in early RA randomized to infliximab+methotrexate or conventional combination therapy. No difference was detected between strategies, and the level of work loss days remained twice that observed in the general population.TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: NCT00764725 This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
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| 6. |
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| 7. |
- Ernestam, Sofia
(författare)
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Rheumatoid arthritis : pharmacological modulation of cytokines : aspects of clinical response and endocrine regulation
- 2006
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a systemic inflammatory disease primarily affecting the joints. In the pathogenesis several cells of the immune systeme and messengers of the immune systeme, cytokines, are important. In this thesis, the cytokine-modulating effects of two different treatments in RA, gold sodium thiomalate (GSTM) and the TNF-antagonist infliximab, are investigated. Further genetic factors potentially predicting clinical response to another TNF-antagonist, etanercept, are presented. Finally, the effect of TNF-antagonists on the hormone levels of the adrenal and gonadal axes is demonstrated. The mechanism of action of GSTM is not fully understood. We studied 20 patients with RA during treatment with GSTM. The numbers of IL-6-, IL-10- and IFNgamma-producing cells measured with ELISPOT were significantly increased after four weeks treatment with GSTM, as was serum concentrations of IL-10. In addition a higher IL-10 production from peripheral blood mononuclear cells was recorded in patients without a subsequent skin rash. There was no correlation between clinical response and cytokine production. In conclusion, GSTM seems to have immunoregulatory properties that may be important for the therapeutic effect in RA. The effect of TNF-antagonists on cytokine expression in the synovial membrane may be of relevance as additional therapeutic targets may be identified. We studied the effect of the TNF-antagonist infliximab on the synovial expression of TNF, IL-1alpha, IL-1beta, IFNgamma and IL-15 with immunohistochemistry. IL-15 is still present in the synovial tissue after treatment with infliximab as a remaining potential target. There was no correlation between synovial expression of IL-15 and response to therapy, but expression of TNF at baseline was exclusively seen in patients with good response to infliximab. Genetic factors, such as HLADRB1/shared epitope or cytokine gene promoter polymorphisms, relevant to RA, were investigated concerning correlation with clinical response to the TNF-antagonist etanercept. The combination of the alleles 308TNFG/G and 1087IL-10G/G was correlated with a good response, compared with all other combinations. This combination may correlate with a presumed functional phenotype with a low immune response. Both adrenal and gonadal axes are reported to be downregulated in RA with a decreased responsiveness to inflammatory stimuli. This down-regulation has been suggested to be the effect of proinflammatory cytokines. We studied ACTH, cortisol, DHEAS, LH, testosterone and estradiol during two years treatment with TNF-antagonists. An individual stability in hormone levels was recorded, with no effect of decreased disease activity on this stability. DHEAS increased in females without prednisolone treatment, with a correlation with improved physical function, possibly relevant to other effective treatments. A subset of women with low adrenal hormone levels had a disease onset at a young age. Presuming a stable individual hormonal homeostasis, these low adrenal hormone levels may even precede disease onset. In conclusion, studies on cytokine-modulating treatment strategies in RA may provide information on mechanism of action and give further insight in potential pathogenetic mechanisms.
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| 8. |
- Hambardzumyan, Karen, et al.
(författare)
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A Multi-Biomarker Disease Activity Score and the Choice of Second-Line Therapy in Early Rheumatoid Arthritis After Methotrexate Failure
- 2017
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Ingår i: Arthritis & Rheumatology. - : Wiley. - 2326-5191 .- 2326-5205. ; 69:5, s. 953-963
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Objective: To investigate whether the Multi-Biomarker Disease Activity (MBDA) score predicts optimal add-on treatment in patients with early rheumatoid arthritis (RA) who were inadequate responders to MTX (MTX-IRs). Methods: We analyzed data from 157 MTX-IRs (with a Disease Activity Score using the erythrocyte sedimentation rate [DAS28-ESR] >3.2) from the Swedish Pharmacotherapy (SWEFOT) trial who were randomized to receive triple therapy (MTX plus sulfasalazine plus hydroxychloroquine) versus MTX plus infliximab. The MBDA score as a predictor of the subsequent DAS28-based response to each second-line treatment was analyzed at randomization with the Breslow-Day test for 2 × 2 groups, using both validated categories (low [<30], moderate [30–44], and high [>44]) and dichotomized categories (lower [≤38] versus higher [>38]). Results: Among the 157 patients, 12% had a low MBDA score, 32% moderate, and 56% high. Of those with a low MBDA score, 88% responded to subsequent triple therapy, and 18% responded to MTX plus infliximab (P = 0.006); for those with a high MBDA score, the response rates were 35% and 58%, respectively (P = 0.040). When using 38 as a cutoff for the MBDA score (29% patients with lower scores versus 71% with higher scores), the differential associations with response to triple therapy versus MTX plus infliximab were 79% versus 44% and 36% versus 58%, respectively (P = 0.001). Clinical and inflammatory markers had poorer predictive capacity for response to triple therapy or MTX plus infliximab. Conclusion: In patients with RA who had an inadequate response to MTX, the MBDA score categories were differentially associated with response to subsequent therapies. Thus, patients with post-MTX biochemical improvements (lower MBDA scores) were more likely to respond to triple therapy than to MTX plus infliximab. If confirmed, these results may help to improve treatment in RA.
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| 9. |
- Hedenstierna, Louise, et al.
(författare)
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Neither low social support nor low decision latitude at work is associated with disease remission among patients with rheumatoid arthritis : results from the Swedish EIRA study
- 2022
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Ingår i: Arthritis Research & Therapy. - : BioMed Central. - 1478-6362. ; 24:1
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- OBJECTIVES: To investigate the association between psychosocial vulnerability, defined as either low social support or low decision latitude at work, and disease remission at 3, 12, and 60 months in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA).METHODS: This cohort study included all patients enrolled in both the Swedish Epidemiological Investigation of Rheumatoid Arthritis (EIRA) 1996-2015 and the Swedish Rheumatology Quality Register (SRQ, n = 2820). Information on social support and decision latitude at work at RA diagnosis were identified from the EIRA questionnaire. Indexes for levels of social support and decision latitude at work, respectively, were calculated based on the questionnaire. Low social support and low decision latitude at work, respectively, were identified by a score in the lowest quartile and compared with the three other quartiles (not low). Disease-activity parameters were retrieved from SRQ at 3, 12, and 60 months. The associations between social support or decision latitude at work, respectively, and Disease Activity Score 28 joint count with C-reactive protein (DAS28-CRP) remission were analysed using logistic regression models adjusted for age, sex, smoking habits, alcohol habits, symptom duration, and educational level.RESULTS: Having low social support (n = 591) was not associated with DAS28-CRP remission at 3 (OR 0.93, 95% CI 0.74-1.16), 12 (OR 0.96, 95%CI 0.75-1.23), or 60 (OR 0.89, 95%CI 0.72-1.10) months compared to not low social support (n = 2209). No association was observed for low (n = 212) versus not low (n = 635) decision latitude at work and DAS28-CRP remission at 3 (OR 0.84, 95%CI 0.54-1.31), 12 (OR 0.81, 95%CI 0.56-1.16), or 60 (OR 1.37, 95%CI 0.94-2.01) months.CONCLUSION: In a country with general access to healthcare, psychosocial vulnerability does not influence the likelihood of achieving remission in early RA.
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| 10. |
- Karlsson, Johan, et al.
(författare)
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Addition of infliximab compared with addition of sulfasalazine and hydroxychloroquine to methotrexate in early rheumatoid arthritis: 2-year quality-of-life results of the randomised, controlled, SWEFOT trial.
- 2013
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Ingår i: Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases. - : BMJ. - 1468-2060 .- 0003-4967. ; 72:12, s. 1927-1933
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- OBJECTIVE: To compare EuroQol 5-Dimensions (EQ-5D) utility and quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs) in patients with early, methotrexate (MTX) refractory rheumatoid arthritis (RA), randomised to addition of infliximab (IFX) or sulfasalazine and hydroxychloroquine (SSZ+HCQ). METHODS: RA-patients with symptoms <1 year were enrolled between 2002 and 2005 at 15 Swedish centres. After 3-4 months of MTX monotherapy, patients with a remaining DAS28>3.2 were randomised to addition of IFX or SSZ+HCQ and followed for 21 months. EQ-5D profiles were collected every 3 months. Between-group comparisons of utility change and accumulated QALYs were performed, using last observation carried forward (LOCF) following protocol breach. Missing data were imputed by linear interpolation or LOCF. Sensitivity analyses applying baseline observation carried forward (BOCF) or restricted to completers were conducted. RESULTS: Of 487 patients initially enrolled, 128 and 130 were randomised to IFX or SSZ+HCQ, respectively. Mean utility in the IFX and SSZ+HCQ groups increased from 0.52 (SD 0.27) and 0.55 (SD 0.27) at randomisation to 0.66 (SD 0.25) and 0.63 (SD 0.27) at 21 months (adjusted mean difference favouring IFX 0.04; 95% CI -0.01, 0.09; p=0.15). Average accumulated QALYs were 1.10 (SD 0.37) and 1.07 (SD 0.42) in the IFX and SSZ+HCQ groups, respectively (adjusted mean difference favouring IFX 0.07; 95%CI -0.01, 0.14; p=0.07). BOCF analysis showed similar results, while differences were reversed, though remained statistically non-significant among completers. Dropout rates in the IFX/SSZ+HCQ groups were 30%/43% (p=0.01). CONCLUSIONS: Comparing addition of IFX or SSZ+HCQ to MTX in active early RA, no statistically significant differences in utility or QALY gain could be detected over 21 months. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Registered in WHO database at the Karolinska University Hospital, number CT20080004.
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