Course of uveitis in patients with ankylosing spondylitis during the interleukin 17 inhibitors therapy

Abstract

Background. Biological disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (bDMARDs) can have different effects on various clinical manifestations of ankylosing spondylitis (AS). Data on the effects of interleukin 17 inhibitors (iIL17) on uveitis in AS continue to accumulate. Objective – to evaluate the effect of iIL17 therapy on the course of uveitis in AS. Material and methods. 73 patients (pts) with AS (New York criteria, 1984), who received iIL17 (57 – secukinumab (SEC), 22 – netakimab (NTK)) for at least 1 year were included in the study. The average age of pts at the time of inclusion in the study was 41.93±8.95 years, the average duration of AS was 10.75±6.22 years. There were 40 (56.7%) men and 33 (43.3%) women among the pts. HLA-B27 was detected in 62/73 (85%), coxitis in 58 (79%), enthesitis in 63 (86.3%), peripheral arthritis in 57 (78%), psoriasis in 7 (9.5%), inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) in 3 (4.1%); in 6 (8.2%) the disease started before the age of 16; 19 (26%) pts had at least 1 episode of uveitis during the course of the disease. The rates of uveitis was estimated by comparing the number of incidences per 100 patient-years before the start of bDMARDs therapy and during iIL17 using. Result. The incidence rate of uveitis before the start of bDMARDs therapy for all pts was 8.3 per 100 pt-years (95% CI: 0.065–0.107), during iIL17 therapy – 9.2 per 100 pt-years (95% CI: 0.06–0.15; p=0.72). The incidence rate of uveitis among pts used SEC was 10.1 per 100 patient-years (95% CI: 0.079–0.13) before the start of bDMARDs therapy, during SEC using – 9.4 per 100 pt-years (95% CI: 0.05–0.15; p=0.74). The incidence rate of uveitis among pts used NTK was 4.8 per 100 pt-years (95% CI: 0.028–0.08) before the start of bDMARDs therapy, during the NTK using – 7.1 per 100 pt-years (95% CI: 0.019–0,22; p=0.3). For patients with a history of uveitis, the incidence rate of uveitis before the start of therapy with bDMARDs was 22.5 per 100 pt-years (95% CI: 0.18–0.28), during iIL17 therapy – 29.1 per 100 pt-years (95% CI: 0.18–0.43; p=0.29). Occurrences of uveitis were observed in 4 of 57 pts (7%) during the using of SEC, and in 1 of 25 pts (4%) – during the NTK therapy. 1 case of new-onset uveitis was recorded during the using of SEC. Conclusion. There were no significant differences in the incidence rates of uveitis during iIL17 using compared with non-biological therapy. iIL17 have not demonstrated a significant effect on the course of uveitis in AS in the study group.

Keywords

• ankylosing spondylitis
• uveitis
• interleukin 17 inhibitors