Psoriasis is a systemic autoimmune disease with symptoms of inflammation of the skin that appears as red, scaly patches on various parts of the body. Psoriasis patients may experience symptoms of joint pain known as psoriatic arthritis, which mainly affects the small joints.
Psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis are autoimmune diseases, so they are treated with anti-inflammatory drugs, such as corticosteroids, methotrexate, or a Janus-Kinase inhibitor (tofacitinib).
Dr. Eder and his team conducted a clinical trial that evaluated the effectiveness of psoriatic arthritis treatment using tofacitinib, as well as evaluating how effective tofacitinib treatment was in both male and female patients. The results showed that tofacitinib treatment was more effective than placebo in both men and women. However, women were more likely to achieve minimal disease activity (MDA).
Conclusion:
In psoriatic arthritis patients, tofacitinib is effective for improving psoriatic arthritis symptoms, both in men and women, but women are more likely to achieve minimal disease activity (MDA).
Image: Illustration (Source: rawpixel-Freepik)
Reference:
Eder L, Gladman DD, Mease P, Pollock RA, Luna R, Aydin SZ, et al. Sex differences in the efficacy, safety and persistence of patients with psoriatic arthritis treated with tofacitinib: A post-hoc analysis of phase 3 trials and long-term extension. RMD Open 2023;9:e002718.
