Similar efficacy and safety of initial COBRA-light and COBRA therapy in rheumatoid arthritis: 4-year results from the COBRA-light trial

• Published in: Rheumatology (Oxford, England) Vol. 56; no. 9; pp. 1586 - 1596
• Main Authors: Konijn, Nicole P C, van Tuyl, Lilian H D, Boers, Maarten, den Uyl, Debby, Ter Wee, Marieke M, van der Wijden, Lindsey K M, Bultink, Irene E M, Kerstens, Pit J S M, Voskuyl, Alexandre E, van Schaardenburg, Dirkjan, Nurmohamed, Michael T, Lems, Willem F
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England 01.09.2017
• Subjects: Adult; Aged; Antirheumatic Agents - administration & dosage; Antirheumatic Agents - adverse effects; Antirheumatic Agents - therapeutic use; Arthritis, Rheumatoid - diagnostic imaging; Arthritis, Rheumatoid - drug therapy; Comorbidity; Disease Progression; Drug Administration Schedule; Drug Therapy, Combination; Female; Follow-Up Studies; Humans; Male; Methotrexate - administration & dosage; Methotrexate - adverse effects; Methotrexate - therapeutic use; Middle Aged; Prednisolone - administration & dosage; Prednisolone - adverse effects; Prednisolone - therapeutic use; Radiography; Severity of Illness Index; Sulfasalazine - administration & dosage; Sulfasalazine - adverse effects; Sulfasalazine - therapeutic use; Survival Analysis; Treatment Outcome; comorbidities; long-term follow-up; safety; combination therapy; early RA; DMARDs; rheumatoid arthritis; efficacy
• ISSN: 1462-0324; 1462-0332
• DOI: 10.1093/rheumatology/kex223

To assess the efficacy and safety of initial COBRA-light vs COBRA therapy in RA patients after a 4-year follow-up period. In the COBRA-light trial, 162 consecutive patients with recent-onset RA were randomized to either COBRA-light (prednisolone and MTX) or COBRA therapy (prednisolone, MTX and SSZ) for 1 year. After 1 year, treatment was continued without protocol, and adjusted by the treating physician according to clinical judgement, preferably with a treat-to-target strategy. Four years after trial initiation, all patients were invited to participate in the COBRA-light extension study, in which patients were interviewed and physically examined, patient reported outcomes were assessed, radiographs were made and clinical records were examined for comorbidities and medication use. In the extension study, 149 out of 162 (92%) original trial patients participated: 72 COBRA-light and 77 COBRA patients. Initial COBRA-light and COBRA therapy showed similar effect on disease activity, physical functioning, radiological outcome and Boolean remission over the 4-year follow-up period. In addition, both treatment groups showed similar survival and major comorbidities, although the power to detect differences was limited. Besides protocolled differences in prednisolone, MTX and SSZ use, the use of other synthetic and biologic DMARDs and intra-articular and intramuscular glucocorticoid injections was similar in both treatment groups over the 4-year period. Early RA patients initially treated with COBRA-light or COBRA therapy had similar efficacy and safety outcomes over a 4-year follow-up period.