Objective:

Main objective: Describe the effectiveness and safety of baricitinib and tofacitinib in patients diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis in our hospital. Secondary objective: Analyse whether there are differences between the two drugs in routine clinical practice.

Method:

Two-year retrospective study of patients diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis treated in our hospital with baricitinib and tofacitinib for at least 6 months. Databases: Electronic medical record and outpatient medication dispensing software. Variables collected: Demographic variables, poor prognosis factors, previous treatment, duration of treatment, concomitant treatment, DAS28, number of swollen and painful joints, pain visual analogy scale, treatment discontinuation, and adverse reactions. Effectiveness evaluation: Decreases in the DAS28 scale, the number of swollen and painful joints, and the pain Visual Analogy Scale at 6 months and 12 months after starting treatment. Safety evaluation: Detection of adverse reactions. Statistical analysis: Student t-test.

Results:

A total of 44 patients were evaluated. Of these, 20 (70% women) received treatment with baricitinib and 24 (95.8% women) received tofacitinib. Baricitinib reduced the DAS28 by 2.3 and 1.7 at 6 months and 12 months, respectively, and tofacitinib reduced the scale by 2 and 1.9 at 6 months and 12 months, respectively. Baricitinib reduced the number of swollen and painful joints by 7 at both 6 months and 12 months, and tofacitinib reduced the number of swollen and painful joints by 4 and 6 at 6 months and 12 months, respectively. Baricitinib reduced the Visual Analogy Scale score by 7.8 and 6.8 at 6 months and 12 months, respectively, and tofacitinib reduced the score by 5 and 6 at 6 months and 12 months, respectively. Corticosteroid treatment was needed in 40% of patients treated with baricitinib and 62.5% of patients treated with tofacitinib. Treatment was discontinued due to loss of effectiveness in 10% of patients receiving baricitinib and 25% of patients treated with tofacitinib. Adverse reactions were experienced by 10% of patients treated with baricitinib and 12.5% of patients treated with tofacitinib. Adverse reactions led to treatment discontinuation in only 1 patient in each group. No statistically significant differences were observed between the two drugs.

Conclusions:

The results show that baricitinib and tofacitinib were effective and safe in relation to all the variables analysed. Moreover, both drugs were similar in terms of effectiveness and safety for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis in real-world clinical practice.