FROM THE BRITISH JOURNAL OF DERMATOLOGY
Side effects in conjunction with inadequate disease control lead patients with plaque psoriasis to discontinue methotrexate (MTX) treatment, Dr. Marisol Otero and her colleagues reported.
The investigators identified 85 adult patients with plaque psoriasis from the Continuous Assessment of Psoriasis Treatment Use Registry With Methotrexate (MTX-CAPTURE) who had been treated with MTX for up to of 5.2 years. All had been started on MTX in accordance with Dutch and European guidelines.
Dose adjustments during treatment were made at physicians’ discretion and most patients (84) received folic acid supplements to protect against gastrointestinal side effects. Patients were required to have at least one follow up session with their physician during the study, according to Dr. Otero of the department of dermatology at Radboud University, Nijmegen, the Netherlands, and her colleagues.
At the end of 5 years, 55 patients (64.7%) had discontinued MTX, defined as cessation of MTX for more than 90 days or addition of another systemic psoriasis medication (Br J Dermatol. doi: 10.1111/bjd.15305).
Of the patients who discontinued treatment, 19 (34.5%) did so solely because of side effects, 14 (25.5%) discontinued because of lack of efficacy, and 7 (12.7%) cited the combination of side effects and ineffectiveness. Nine (16.4%) decided to end treatment for other reasons including personal decision, desire for pregnancy, and clinically inactive disease. Six (10.9%) were lost to for follow-up.
Side effects alone were the primary determinant in drug survival, with an overall drug survival rate for MTX of 1.8 years, Dr. Otero noted.
“It was remarkable that discontinuation due to side effects and ineffectiveness, were both common, while our hypothesis was that drug survival of MTX would be mainly limited by side effects,” the investigators said. “Side effects alone or in combination with inadequate disease control were more important in the context of treatment discontinuation than inadequate disease control solely.”
