In Brief Etanercept is the first specific anticytokine therapy approved for use in rheumatoid arthritis. Significant reductions in disease activity occurred within 2 weeks of the introduction of etanercept in adults with active rheumatoid arthritis who were refractory to or intolerant of disease modifying antirheumatic drugs. These improvements were sustained for at least 6 months when etanercept was administered alone or in combination with methotrexate. The drug was also effective in paediatric patients with polyarticular juvenile rheumatoid arthritis.
Etanercept is contraindicated in patients with sepsis.
Introduction Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic, progressive, inflammatory disease for which there is no cure. Most patients do not achieve remission, many are unsatisfied with their response to treatment and others become treatment resistant after an initial satisfactory experience. Thus, many patients might benefit from an effective, alternative therapeutic strategy. Cytokines Mediate Inflammation Rheumatoid arthritis is known to result from an inappropriate inflammatory response. The clinical features of rheumatoid arthritis derive, in part, from an imbalance in the cytokines that mediate inflammation.