Re: Prednisone Risks Significant for Pneumonia in Rheumatoid Arthritis Patients

[Guest guest]

This is very interesting. what happens to people who are taking

biologicals as well as prednisolone? does risk increase even more?

Suzie

> ACR: Prednisone Risks Significant for Pneumonia in Rheumatoid

Arthritis

> Patients

>

> By Bruce Sylvester

>

> SAN ANTONIO, TX -- October 22, 2004 -- Rheumatoid arthritis

patients being

> treated with prednisone have a significantly higher risk of

developing

> pneumonia than patients using biologic medications, researchers

reported

> here on October 20th at the 68th Annual Scientific Meeting of the

American

> College of Rheumatology.

>

> " While it is good news that the increased rate of pneumonia in

people taking

> biologics is relatively low, the risk of pneumonia associated with

> prednisone use is substantial, " said investigator Frederick Wolfe,

MD,

> director, National Data Bank for Rheumatic Diseases, Wichita,

Kansas. " This

> means that rather than being a relatively benign therapy,

prednisone appears

> to be a significant contributor to the risks associated with

development of

> pneumonia in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis. "

>

> Dr. Wolfe and colleagues undertook a 2 and a half year study that

compared

> the risks of biologic therapy and prednisone use in 15,966

patients with

> long-term arthritis and an average age of 60.5 years. The

investigators

> evaluated patient responses to semi-annual questionnaires that

were also

> validated by analysis of medical and death records.

>

> Results show that 53.0% used a biologic agent, 18.7% used

> hydroxychloroquine, 55.7% used methotrexate, 32.4% used a disease-

modifying

> antirheumatic agent (DMARD) without a tumor necrosis factor agent,

10.2%

> used neither a DMARD nor a biologic agent, and 38.4 % used

prednisone with

> or without other agents.

>

> Dr. Wolfe reported that subjects who used biologic drugs were 30%

more

> likely to get pneumonia, and subjects who used prednisone were

170% more

> likely to get pneumonia compared to subjects who used other

treatments.

>

> An estimated 35% to 45% of patients treated for rheumatoid

arthritis

> currently use prednisone, and more than 70% of patients will use

it at some

> point, Dr. Wolfe said.

>

> Functional status and disease severity was somewhat predictive of

infection,

> but the study results suggest that steroid therapy could play a

larger

> detrimental role than previously known, he noted.

>

> " These data indicate an increased risk among biologic users, but

also

> demonstrate a much larger risk from corticosteroids, and suggest

more

> attention should be paid to this commonly used but less safe

therapy, he

> concluded.

>

> [Presentation title: Rates and Predictors of Pneumonia in Patients

With

> Rheumatoid Arthritis: Strong Association With Corticosteroid

Therapy.

> Abstract 1763]

[Guest guest]

Silly me, i read it wrong. you are right.

thanks Nina.

Suzie

> ----- Original Message -----

> From: suzie

>

>

> > This is very interesting. what happens to people who are taking

> biologicals as well as prednisolone? does risk increase even more?

>

> I have no idea. Since it said the risk with biologicals is low, it

probably wouldn't add that much risk.

>

> Nina