Observational studyArthritis care & research2017
Treatment of Rheumatoid Arthritis With Anti-Tumor Necrosis Factor or Tocilizumab Therapy as First Biologic Agent in a Global Comparative Observational Study.
Observational study in Arthritis care & research, 2017. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 27 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
27 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 51 citations in OpenAlex.
- Improving rheumatoid arthritis comparative effectiveness research through causal inference principles: systematic review using a target trial emulation framework.Annals of the rheumatic diseases · 2020Pooled it
- Pooled it
- Efficacy, safety, and immunogenicity of proposed biosimilar RGB-19 and tocilizumab intravenously administered to adults with active rheumatoid arthritis and an inadequate response to methotrexate: a phase 3, randomised study.EULAR rheumatology open · 2026Article
- Comparison of the PK, PD, safety, tolerability, and immunogenicity of proposed biosimilar RGB-19 and tocilizumab in healthy Japanese males: a phase 1, randomised, crossover study.EULAR rheumatology open · 2025Article
- A Comprehensive Review: Unraveling the Role of Inflammation in the Etiology of Heart Failure.Heart failure reviews · 2025Review
- Biological DMARD survival in rheumatoid arthritis patients in clinical practice: a METEOR registry data analysis.Rheumatology international · 2025Article
- State of the Art in Novel Treatment Strategies in Rheumatoid Arthritis: A Brief Review.Mediterranean journal of rheumatology · 2025Review
- Efficacy of tocilizumab in patients with moderate-to-severe corticosteroid-resistant thyroid eye disease: a prospective study.International ophthalmology · 2024Article
- Comparative effectiveness of TNF inhibitor vs IL-6 receptor inhibitor as monotherapy or combination therapy with methotrexate in biologic-experienced patients with rheumatoid arthritis: An analysis from the CorEvitas RA Registry.Clinical rheumatology · 2023Observational
- Reduced C-reactive protein level at hospital admission in patients treated with Tocilizumab - An attention may be required.Heliyon · 2023Article
- A national, multicenter, retrospective study evaluating retention rate and efficacy of tocilizumab treatment in patients with active rheumatoid arthritis who had an inadequate response to csDMARDs and/or TNF inhibitors.Turkish journal of medical sciences · 2023Article
- Analysis of hematological parameters in rheumatoid arthritis patients receiving biological therapy: contribution to prevention of avoidable hematological complications.EXCLI journal · 2022Article
- Comparison of the drug retention and reasons for discontinuation of tumor necrosis factor inhibitors and interleukin-6 inhibitors in Japanese patients with elderly-onset rheumatoid arthritis-the ANSWER cohort study.Arthritis research & therapy · 2021Article
- Review
- A Single-Center Retrospective Observational Study Evaluating the Favorable Predictive Factors for the Disease Control Time of Treatment with Tocilizumab in Patients of Rheumatoid Arthritis.Journal of inflammation research · 2021Article
- Application of a hemophilia mortality framework to the Emicizumab Global Safety Database.Journal of thrombosis and haemostasis : JTH · 2021Article
- Safety and efficacy of tocilizumab for rheumatoid arthritis: a systematic review and meta-analysis of clinical trial studies.Reumatologia · 2021Review
- Acute respiratory viral adverse events during use of antirheumatic disease therapies: A scoping review.Seminars in arthritis and rheumatism · 2020Article
- Anti-IL-6 Receptor Tocilizumab in Refractory Graves' Orbitopathy: National Multicenter Observational Study of 48 Patients.Journal of clinical medicine · 2020Article
- Individual therapeutic DAS28-dRheumatology international · 2020Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors at 4 institutions in 4 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveTo compare clinical effectiveness between tocilizumab and tumor necrosis factor inhibitors (TNFi) in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and inadequate response to conventional synthetic disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs initiating biologic therapy.
methodsPatients prescribed tocilizumab (intravenous) or TNFi were prospectively observed in routine clinical practice for 52 weeks across 158 sites in 26 countries. The primary observation was the change from baseline in Disease Activity Score based on 28 joints using the erythrocyte sedimentation rate (DAS28-ESR) at week 24 using analysis of covariance for between-groups comparison. Secondary end points included Clinical Disease Activity Index (CDAI) and patient-reported outcomes at weeks 24 and 52.
resultsOf 1,216 patients, 35% initiated tocilizumab and 65% initiated TNFi. RA duration was shorter, and disease activity and corticosteroid use were higher in tocilizumab patients. Tocilizumab-treated patients had greater improvement in DAS28-ESR at weeks 24 and 52 (week 24 difference [95% confidence interval] in adjusted means: -0.831 [-1.086, -0.576]; P < 0.001). Change from baseline in CDAI was also greater with tocilizumab (adjusted means difference: week 24, -3.48; week 52, -4.60; both P < 0.001). Tocilizumab-treated patients had more improvement in the Health Assessment Questionnaire disability index than TNFi-treated patients (P < 0.05). The cumulative probability of drug discontinuation at week 52 was lower with tocilizumab (15%) than TNFi (27%; P < 0.001, unadjusted analysis). Unadjusted frequencies (events per 100 patient-years) for tocilizumab and TNFi were 6.44 and 11.99 for serious adverse events, 1.98 and 5.03 for serious infections, and 0.74 and 0.77 for deaths, respectively.
conclusionPatients initiating tocilizumab experienced greater effectiveness and drug survival than those initiating TNFi in an observational setting.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.