SynthesisClinical rheumatology2018
Risk of serious infections in biological treatment of patients with ankylosing spondylitis and non-radiographic axial spondyloarthritis: a meta-analysis.
Synthesis in Clinical rheumatology, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 10 papers, 3 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
10 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 19 citations in OpenAlex.
- Efficacy and Safety of Tumor Necrosis Factor Inhibitors, Interleukin-17 Inhibitors, and Janus Kinase Inhibitors in Patients with Non-Radiographic Axial Spondyloarthritis: A Systematic Review and Network Meta-Analysis.International archives of allergy and immunology · 2025Pooled it
- Comparative efficacy and safety of bimekizumab in axial spondyloarthritis: a systematic literature review and network meta-analysis.Rheumatology (Oxford, England) · 2024Pooled it
- Risk of Infections and Cancer in Patients With Rheumatologic Diseases Receiving Interleukin Inhibitors: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.JAMA network open · 2019Pooled it
- Biologics reduced infections in ankylosing spondylitis and psoriatic arthritis under immunosuppressants.Journal of the Chinese Medical Association : JCMA · 2026Article
- Management of Specific Clinical Profiles in Axial Spondyloarthritis: An Expert's Document Based on a Systematic Literature Review and Extended Delphi Process.Rheumatology and therapy · 2023Article
- Trends in Hospitalization for Tuberculosis and Other Opportunistic Infections in Australian Patients with Inflammatory Joint Diseases.Rheumatology and therapy · 2023Article
- Anti-TNF treatment in ankylosing spondylitis patients with chronic kidney disease: Is it effective and safe?European journal of rheumatology · 2022Article
- Comorbidity management in spondyloarthritis.RMD open · 2020Review
- [Acute exacerbation of the underlying disease or infection : Which diagnostics are warranted in patients with immunosuppressive treatment for inflammatory rheumatic diseases?]Zeitschrift fur Rheumatologie · 2019Review
- [Comorbidities-Their role in the treat to target concept for rheumatoid arthritis].Zeitschrift fur Rheumatologie · 2019Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
3 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
The objective of the study is to quantitatively assess the risk of serious infections in patients with axial spondyloarthritis (AS) and non-radiographic axial spondyloarthritis (nr-axSpA) treated by biologics enrolled in randomized controlled trials (RCTs). A systematic literature searches of MEDLINE (via PubMed), EMBASE, the Cochrane Library and abstracts archives of the annual scientific meetings of both the American College of Rheumatology (ACR) and the European League Against Rheumatism (EULAR) was conducted through October 2015. The RCTs that compared the safety of any biologics treatment for AS or nr-axSpA with placebo and/or non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and/or conventional disease modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs) with a minimum of 12 weeks of follow-up were selected independently by 2 reviewers. Twenty-five RCTs with data from 2403 patients were analyzed in the analysis. Patients included active AS in 21 studies and nr-axSpA in 4 studies were treated by 5 TNF inhibitors (adalimumab, certolizumab, etanercept, golimumab and infliximab) and 3 non-TNF inhibitors (sarilumab, tocilizumab, secukinumab). The risk of serious infections has no difference and numerically was only slightly increased in patients with AS and nr-axSpA treated by biologics compared with controls (OR = 1.42; 95%CI 0.58-3.47). Stratified analysis yielded the pooled risk differences (RDs) of 0.00 (95%CI, - 0.01 to 0.01), 0.01 (95%CI - 0.01 to 0.03), - 0.00 (95%CI -0.01 to 0.01), 0.00 (95%CI - 0.02 to 0.02), 0.01 (95%CI -0.01 to 0.03) and 0.01 (95%CI -0.02 to 0.04) for adalimumab, certolizumab, etanercept, golimumab, infliximab and non-TNF inhibitors respectively. There are also no significant effect of biologics on serious infections was observed compared with controls in patients with AS (p = 0.29) and nr-axSpA (p = 0.89). The use of biologics among patients with AS and nr-axSpA included in RCTs was not significantly associated with an increased risk of serious infections compared with placebo or NSAIDs or DMARDs.
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