1. Safety and efficacy of etanercept in children with juvenile idiopathic arthritis below the age of 4 years.
- Author
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Tzaribachev, N., Kuemmerle-Deschner, J., Eichner, M., and Horneff, G.
- Subjects
ETANERCEPT ,ANTIRHEUMATIC agents ,DRUG efficacy ,ARTHRITIS ,PEDIATRICS - Abstract
Little is known about the safety and efficacy of etanercept in children below the age of 4 years. Twenty-five patients with juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) below the age of 4 years, who received etanercept, were documented in the German JIA Etanercept Registry. Patients with the nonsystemic JIA disease-subtype responded more frequently to treatment with etanercept than systemic onset patients. At last observation, two (20%) of the nonsystemic patients did not reach a PedACR 30 response, while six (40%) of the systemic onset patients did not respond to the therapy. Complete resolution of symptoms was observed in two (20%) nonsystemic and in five (33%) systemic onset patients with JIA. Tolerability was good with only two infections occurring in the total patients group. Patients with JIA below the age of 4 years, with a methotrexate-resistant disease course, would also benefit from treatment with etanercept, showing a good tolerability. The restriction to children older than 4 years appears to be artificial without any good rationale. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2008
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