Rheumatoid Arthritis

Proper Treatment of RA and Its Comorbidities May Help Reduce Overall Cost of Care1,2

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A survey of electronic medical records (N=335) determined that annual all-cause healthcare costs totaled $30,427 in patients achieving remission vs $38,645 in the nonremission cohort. The difference was statistically significant.1

These data underscore the importance of targeting remission (treat-to-target, or T2T*) as the goal of therapy.1

The use of biosimilars may also improve treatment cost-effectiveness.3

Learn more about the potential impact of adding a biosimilar to current health system formularies
Learn more about the potential impact of adding a biosimilar to current health system formularies

Patients are more likely to be hospitalized for other rheumatologic disorders4

Rheumatologic disorders and cardiovascular (CV) diseases were the most common International Classification of Diseases (ICD) categories for hospitalization. Sepsis was the most common principal diagnosis for hospitalization.4

Management of comorbidities may reduce hospitalization rates.4

  • The most commonly observed comorbidities are depression (15%), asthma (7%), CV events (6%), solid-organ malignancies (5%), and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (4%)5
RA comorbidity statistics graphic
 
 

*Refers to a systematic approach involving frequent monitoring of disease activity using validated instruments and modification of treatment to minimize disease activity with the goal of reaching a predefined target (low disease activity or remission).6

1. Bergman M, Zhou L, Patel P, et al. Healthcare costs of not achieving remission in patients with rheumatoid arthritis in the United States: a retrospective cohort study. Adv Ther. 2021;38(5):2558-2570. 2. van de Laar CJ, Oude Voshaar MAH, Vonkeman HE. Cost-effectiveness of different treat-to-target strategies in rheumatoid arthritis: results from the DREAM registry. BMC Rheumatol. 2019;3(16):1-9. 3. Kim H, Alten R, Avedano L, et al. The future of biosimilars: maximizing benefits across immune-mediated inflammatory diseases. Drugs. 2020;80(2):99-113. 4. Kannayiram S, Guraya A, Muojieje CC, et al. An analysis of rheumatoid arthritis hospitalizations. Curēus. 2020;12(12):e12344. 5. Dougados M, Soubrier M, Antunez A, et al. Prevalence of comorbidities in rheumatoid arthritis and evaluation of their monitoring: results of an international, cross-sectional study (COMORA). Ann Rheum Dis. 2014;73(1):62-68. 6. Fraenkel L, Bathon JM, England BR, et al. 2021 American College of Rheumatology Guideline for the Treatment of Rheumatoid Arthritis. Arthritis Care Res (Hoboken). 2021;73(7):924-939.