Cohorts of users of the originator infliximab
| Characteristic | Infliximab cohort; no. (%) of patients* | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Historical cohort 2016 n = 520 | Historical cohort 2017 n = 461 | Historical cohort 2018 n = 423 | Policy cohort 2019 n = 377 | |
| Age, yr | ||||
| Mean ± SD | 56.4 ± 15.7 | 57.4 ± 16.0 | 58.3 ± 15.6 | 58.6 ± 15.7 |
| Median (range) | 57.5 (6.0–91.0) | 58.0 (4.0–90.0) | 59.0 (7.0–91.0) | 60.0 (8.0–91.0) |
| Sex | ||||
| Female | 289 (55.6) | 247 (53.6) | 228 (53.9) | 200 (53.1) |
| Male | 231 (44.4) | 214 (46.4) | 195 (46.1) | 177 (46.9) |
| Most likely diagnosis | ||||
| Any rheumatologic diagnosis | 480 (92.3) | 422 (91.5) | 387 (91.5) | 345 (91.5) |
| Rheumatoid arthritis | 278 (53.5) | 242 (52.5) | 218 (51.5) | 190 (50.4) |
| Ankylosing spondylosis | 115 (22.1) | 109 (23.6) | 101 (23.9) | 90 (23.9) |
| Psoriatic arthritis | 45 (8.7) | 41 (8.9) | 38 (9.0) | 30 (8.0) |
| Psoriasis | 19 (3.7) | 15 (3.3) | 17 (4.0) | 15 (4.0) |
| Undetermined | 21 (4.0) | 24 (5.2) | 19 (4.5) | 17 (4.5) |
| Time from first infliximab use, yr, mean ± SD | 7.2 ± 4.5 | 8.5 ± 4.4 | 9.6 ± 4.3 | 10.6 ± 4.3 |
| Health services utilization in previous year, mean ± SD | ||||
| No. of different medications | ||||
| Any medication† | 9.3 ± 6.0 | 9.3 ± 6.2 | 8.7 ± 5.4 | 8.7 ± 5.6 |
| Biologic anti-inflammatory medications‡ | 1.1 ± 0.3 | 1.0 ± 0.1 | 1.0 ± 0.0 | 1.0 ± 0.0 |
| Conventional synthetic anti-inflammatory medications§ | 0.8 ± 0.8 | 0.8 ± 0.8 | 0.8 ± 0.8 | 0.7 ± 0.7 |
| No. of visits to physicians¶ | 23.2 ± 16.7 | 23.1 ± 17.9 | 21.7 ± 14.6 | 20.9 ± 15.0 |
| No. of nights in hospital** | 1.0 ± 5.2 | 0.8 ± 3.9 | 0.6 ± 3.6 | 0.5 ± 2.6 |
SD = standard deviation.
↵* Except where indicated otherwise.
↵† Based on non-brand names of prescription medications.
↵‡ Biologic anti-inflammatory medications were adalimumab, etanercept, certolizumab, golimumab, abatacept, tocilizumab, anakinra, tofacitinib, rituximab, ustekinumab, secukinumab, ixekizumab, brodalumab and guselkumab.
↵§ Conventional synthetic anti-inflammatory medications were methotrexate, hydroxychloroquine, leflunomide, sulfasalazine, minocycline, azathioprine, auranofin, chloroquine, cyclophosphamide, cyclosporine, gold sodium thiomalate, mycophenolate and penicillamine.
↵¶ Visits to physician of any specialty, in an outpatient setting, are included, regardless of whether the subsequent visit was to the same physician.
↵** Includes all nights in hospital, regardless of whether the admission was associated with an emergency department visit.