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Page: << Prev | 1 | 2 A "comment" article in the journal accompanying the study likened the impact of psoriasis on patients' quality of life to that of other severe disorders, including diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis or cancer.
A pro-inflammatory protein called tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF alpha) is also thought to play a part in the development of psoriasis. Remicade is a monoclonal antibody that binds to TNF alpha, essentially incapacitating it.
The phase III British study involved 378 patients with moderate to severe psoriasis, assigned to receive either Remicade or a placebo intravenously at intervals for 46 weeks.
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Using two different psoriasis indices, the researchers found that, by the tenth week, 80 percent of patients treated with Remicade had achieved at least a 75 percent improvement while 57 percent achieved a 90 percent improvement, compared with 1 and 3 percent, respectively, in the placebo group.
One quarter of the individuals in the Remicade group achieved a complete clearing of their skin psoriasis vs. none in the placebo group.
The benefit was also a sustained one: At week 24, 82 percent of those on Remicade still experienced a 75 percent improvement, versus only 4 percent for placebo patients. And 58 percent of those on Remicade had a 90 percent improvement, compared to just one percent of the placebo group.
At week 50, 61 percent of those on Remicade still had their 75 percent improvement and 45 percent still had a 90 percent improvement.
Participants also experienced improvements in nail psoriasis, which is often considered a sign of treatment-resistant disease. By week 24, people taking Remicade experienced an average 56 percent decrease in this condition -- a level of success that was maintained throughout the trial.
"A key observation was that the nail disease, which affects 50 percent of patients with psoriasis, is also significantly improved," Griffiths stated. "This is one of the very first studies to demonstrate such marked improvement in nail disease."
There were some side effects, including infection, in those taking Remicade. But, the authors stated, the drug "was generally well tolerated in most patients." The majority -- 80 percent -- of participants completed all transfusions.
More information
For more on psoriasis treatment, visit the National Psoriasis Foundation (www.psoriasis.org ).
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