Tuberculosis and other infections in the anti-tumour necrosis factor-alpha (anti-TNF-α) era

We review the global experience of infections in patients treated with tumour necrosis factor (TNF)-α inhibitors, which shows that the overall incidence of severe infections is at least doubled. In particular, this is true regarding tuberculosis. Screening and prophylactic measures have substantiall...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inBest practice & research. Clinical rheumatology Vol. 25; no. 3; pp. 375 - 388
Main Authors Nacci, Francesca, Matucci-Cerinic, Marco
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Netherlands Elsevier Ltd 01.06.2011
Subjects
Anti-TNF-α
Humans
Infections
Rheumatic Diseases - diagnosis
Rheumatic Diseases - etiology
Rheumatology
Risk Factors
Tuberculosis
Tuberculosis - diagnosis
Tuberculosis - etiology
Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha - adverse effects
Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha - antagonists & inhibitors
Infections
Tuberculosis
Anti-TNF-α
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Summary:We review the global experience of infections in patients treated with tumour necrosis factor (TNF)-α inhibitors, which shows that the overall incidence of severe infections is at least doubled. In particular, this is true regarding tuberculosis. Screening and prophylactic measures have substantially reduced but not eliminated the risk. Recent improvements in immunologic testing for non-Bacillus Calmette–Guerin (BCG)-related antigens allow more sensitive identification of latent tuberculosis and wider use of such methods holds promise as pre-treatment screening instruments.
Bibliography:ObjectType-Article-2
SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1
ObjectType-Feature-3
content type line 23
ObjectType-Review-1
ISSN:1521-6942
1532-1770
DOI:10.1016/j.berh.2011.06.001