BACKGROUND Chronic hepatitis C infection is frequently associated with a mixed cryoglobulinaemia and circulating auto-antibodies, especially anti-smooth muscle cells (SMA) and anti-liver/kidney/microsome type 1 (LKM-1) anti-tissue antibodies. Treatments with TNF antagonists favour the emergence of auto-antibodies, and particularly anti-dsDNA antibodies. OBJECTIVE To determine the impact of TN...

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA), psoriatic arthritis, and ankylosing spondylitis are highly prevalent infl ammatory arthritides. Various conventional therapies are currently in use, and biologic therapies have also been introduced into the treatment armamentarium. Despite the remarkable effi cacy of the anti-tumor necrosis factor (TNF) agents, there still remains an unmet need for newer anti-TNF agen...

Abnormalities in liver function tests, including transient and self-limiting hypertransaminasemia, cholestatic disease and hepatitis, can develop during treatment with anti-tumour-necrosis-factor (TNF) therapy. The optimal management of liver injury related to anti-TNF therapy is still a matter of debate. Although some authors recommend discontinuing treatment in case of both a rise of alanine ...

Anti-tumor-necrosis-factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) monoclonal antibody was used to treat Tg197 transgenic mice, which constitutively produce human TNF-alpha (hTNF-alpha) and develop a progressive polyarthritic disease. Treatment of both young (7- or 8-week-old) and aged (27- or 28-week-old) mice commenced when at least two limbs showed signs of moderate to severe arthritis. The therapeutic efficacy o...

CONTEXT Tumor necrosis factor (TNF) plays an important role in host defense and tumor growth control. Therefore, anti-TNF antibody therapies may increase the risk of serious infections and malignancies. OBJECTIVE To assess the extent to which anti-TNF antibody therapies may increase the risk of serious infections and malignancies in patients with rheumatoid arthritis by performing a meta-anal...

OBJECTIVES Anti-TNF therapy has significantly improved outcomes for patients with severe RA. In the UK, changing financial restrictions and increasing experience with their use may have resulted in changes to the way physicians use anti-TNF therapies. The aim of this analysis was to examine changes in disease characteristics and response rates among patients starting anti-TNF therapy for RA ove...

OBJECTIVE The primary objective of this retrospective study was to investigate the possibility of achieving partial remission (PR) in AS patients treated with anti-TNF-α antagonists, such as adalimumab (ADA), etanercept (ETA) and infliximab (INF), in a real clinical practice setting. Predictors of PR were also evaluated. METHODS A retrospective study was conducted in patients with AS treated ...

OBJECTIVES To evaluate the risk of serious infections (SIs) in patients with RA treated with anti-TNF therapy with emphasis on the risk across different ages. METHODS Using data from the British Society for Rheumatology Biologics Register, a prospective observational study, we compared the risk of SI between 11 798 anti-TNF-treated patients and 3598 non-biologic DMARD (nbDMARD)-treated patien...

BACKGROUND AND AIMS At Saitama Medical Center, for remission induction in active ulcerative colitis (UC) patients with endoscopic evidence of severe disease, we tend to preferentially use tacrolimus (TAC) over anti-tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α agents. We conducted this study to evaluate the validity of our therapeutic strategies. PATIENTS AND METHODS This retrospective study was conducted in...

INTRODUCTION Anti-TNF therapies represent a breakthrough in the treatment of severe psoriatic arthritis. However, little is known about long-term drug persistence with these treatments in patients with psoriatic arthritis in routine clinical practice. The aim of this study was to assess persistence with first-course and second-course treatment with anti-TNF agents in a prospective cohort of pso...