Efficacy and safety of reducing duration of infliximab infusion. Issue 2 (March 2014)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Fukuyo, Shunsuke; Saito, Kazuyoshi; Yamaoka, Kunihiro; Sawamukai, Norifumi; Hirata, Shintaro; Nawata, Masao; Iwata, Shigeru; Tanaka, Yoshiya
• Is Part Of: Modern rheumatology. Volume 24:Issue 2(2014)
• Page Start: 275
• Page End: 280
• Publication Date: 2014-03
• Subjects: Rheumatology -- Periodicals; 616.723005
• DOI: 10.3109/14397595.2013.843747
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1439-7595

Abstract

<abstract> <title>Abstract</title> <p> <italic>Objective</italic>. To evaluate the safety and efficacy of reducing the duration of infliximab infusion for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) treatment.</p> <p> <italic>Methods</italic>. The first 6 infliximab infusions were each administered over a 2-h period. If no adverse reaction was observed, infusion times were shortened to 1 h starting with the seventh infusion with further shortening to 30 min starting with the thirteenth infusion. Subjects were divided into two groups: shortened infusion time group, in which infusion times were shortened as above; and constant infusion time group, in which infusion time was 2 h. Incidence of infusion reactions and improvement in disease activity score for 28 joints (DAS-28) erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) for total infusions were compared for the seventh to twelfth and thirteenth to eighteenth infusions.</p> <p> <italic>Results</italic>. The incidences of infusion reactions after the seventh to twelfth and thirteenth to eighteenth infusions in the shortened infusion time group were 0.53% and 0.58%, respectively. In the constant infusion time group, these were 0.70% and 0.67%, respectively. Furthermore, shortening the infusion duration did not affect the DAS-28 (ESR) improvement rate.</p> <p> <italic>Conclusions</italic>. We established that this stage-wise shortening of infusion duration, first to 1 h and then to 30 min, did not compromise the safety or efficacy of treatment.</p> </abstract>