PT - JOURNAL ARTICLE AU - Sae Ochi AU - Fumitaka Mizoguchi AU - Kazuhisa Nakano AU - Yoshiya Tanaka TI - Similarity of Response to Biologics Between Elderly-onset Rheumatoid Arthritis (EORA) and Non-EORA Elderly Patients: From the FIRST Registry AID - 10.3899/jrheum.201135 DP - 2021 Feb 15 TA - The Journal of Rheumatology PG - jrheum.201135 4099 - http://www.jrheum.org/content/early/2021/07/11/jrheum.201135.short 4100 - http://www.jrheum.org/content/early/2021/07/11/jrheum.201135.full AB - Objective Increasing numbers of patients are developing rheumatoid arthritis (RA) at an older age, and optimal treatment of patients with elderly-onset RA (EORA) is attracting greater attention. This study aimed to analyze the efficacy and safety of biologic/targeted synthetic disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (b/tsDMARDs) in EORA and non-EORA elderly patients. Methods A cohort of patients with RA treated with b/tsDMARDs were retrospectively analyzed. Only patients aged ≥ 60 years were included. Among them, patients who developed RA aged ≥ 60 years were categorized as EORA, whereas those aged < 60 years were categorized as non-EORA elderly. Disease activity was compared between the EORA and non-EORA elderly groups. Results In total, 1040 patients were categorized as EORA and 710 as non-EORA elderly. There were no significant differences in characteristics at baseline between the 2 groups. The proportion of patients with low and high disease activity was comparable at Weeks 2, 22, and 54 between the EORA and the non-EORA elderly group. There were no significant differences in the reasons for the discontinuation of b/tsDMARDs between the 2 groups. Elderly RA onset did not affect changes in Clinical Disease Activity Index (CDAI) and Health Assessment Questionnaire–Disability Index, nor did it affect the reasons for b/tsDMARD discontinuation between the 2 groups. The trajectory analysis on CDAI responses to b/tsDMARDs for 54 weeks identified 3 response patterns. The proportion of patients categorized into each group and CDAI response trajectories to b/tsDMARDs were very similar between EORA and non-EORA elderly patients. Conclusion CDAI response patterns to b/tsDMARDs and HR of adverse events were similar between EORA and non-EORA elderly patients.