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| |  Etanercept Treatment Does Not Affect Growth in Children With Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis: Presented at EULAR By Bruce Sylvester COPENHAGEN, Denmark -- June 15, 2009 -- Etanercept treatment does not adversely affect growth in children with juvenile rheumatoid arthritis (RA), researchers reported here at the 10th Annual Congress of the European League Against Rheumatism (EULAR). “We found that treatment with etanercept, and with etanercept in combination with methotrexate, does not have adverse effects on growth and development and, basically, allows treated children to grow more normally,” said Scott Baumgartner, MD, Amgen, Inc., Thousand Oaks, California. Three-year results from this open-label, nonrandomised study were presented last year. On June 12, researchers presented data on treatment effects on growth and long-term safety. In the study, patients aged 2 to 18 years with juvenile rheumatoid arthritis received methotrexate monotherapy (n = 197), etanercept monotherapy (n = 103), or etanercept plus methotrexate (n = 294). Height and weight were measured at baseline and at years 1, 2, and 3, and changes in these parameters were compared by using percentiles from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention standardised growth charts. Mean height increased significantly (P = .0385) from baseline at year 3 (+4.8 percentage points) and when evaluated by each patient’s last visit (+2.6 points) in patients receiving etanercept monotherapy. In patients who received etanercept plus methotrexate, mean height increased significantly by 2.9 to 8.4 percentage points at years 1, 2, and 3 (P < .01). Mean height percentile did not change significantly from baseline at any assessment for patients receiving methotrexate alone. For weight, statistically significant increases (P < .01) were found at all time points compared with baseline percentiles in patients receiving etanercept alone (mean range +5.9 to +13.0 percentage points) and in combination with methotrexate (mean +2.9 to +8.4 points; P < .001). Mean weight percentile did not change significantly in patients receiving methotrexate monotherapy. The difference in percentile change between the etanercept and methotrexate monotherapy patients was statistically significant for both height and weight. Funding for this study was provided by Immunex Corporation. [Presentation title: Effects of Long-Term Treatment With Etanercept on Growth in Children With Polyarticular-Course or Systemic Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis. Abstract TH0415]
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