EXTON, Penn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--BioTrends Research Group, one of the world’s leading research and advisory firms for specialized biopharmaceutical issues, finds that the majority of surveyed rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients in the United Kingdom, Germany, Italy and Spain take only conventional disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs) to treat their RA in a newly published report. According to PatientTrends®: Rheumatoid Arthritis (EU) 2012, close to 75 percent of all surveyed RA patients across the four countries are on conventional DMARD therapy to treat their RA, and almost one-half of these patients are taking methotrexate. Patients were moderate-to-highly satisfied with methotrexate’s ease of use, cost and ability to reduce/eliminate RA symptoms, while safety and side effects received only an above average satisfaction rating.
Surveyed RA patients in the four countries who were diagnosed by a rheumatologist received their first DMARD prescription much faster than those who were initially diagnosed by a primary care physician (PCP), even when the PCP referred the patient to a rheumatologist. A rheumatologist most often chooses RA treatment, and at least one-half of surveyed patients in the UK, Germany and Italy were referred by another physician versus less than one-quarter of patients in Spain.
Almost three-quarters of surveyed RA patients who were biologic naïve reported that their doctor never discussed biologic drug therapy with them despite more than one-half of all surveyed patients having moderate to severe RA. Close to 50 percent of surveyed RA patients indicate that the main reason they are not taking a biologic agent is because their physician doesn’t feel they need this type of therapy yet. Surveyed patients rate the top three biologics they are taking (Pfizer’s Enbrel, Abbott’s Humira, Janssen Biotech’s Remicade) as being effective in slowing/preventing joint damage and reducing pain/inflammation.
“Despite the fact that the majority of surveyed patients are using conventional DMARDs to treat their rheumatoid arthritis, only 25 percent would be extremely likely to recommend this therapy to a friend or family member with RA,” said BioTrends Immunology Therapeutic Class Director Paul Zimmerman. “Conversely, 50 percent of patients would highly recommend Enbrel despite lower usage versus conventional DMARDs.”
PatientTrends: Rheumatoid Arthritis (EU) 2012 surveyed a total of 245 patients diagnosed with and treated for RA in the UK (n=63), Germany (n=70), Italy (n=51) and Spain (n=61). Patient privacy laws in France prohibited the survey in that country. Respondents were required to fulfill the following specific characteristics for this survey: age 18 to 80; diagnosis of rheumatoid arthritis must have come from a physician; must be currently using a disease-modifying medication to treat their rheumatoid arthritis. Surveys were administered via the internet and took approximately 30 minutes to complete.
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