Publications by authors named "Ziga Rotar"
Article Synopsis
- - The research aimed to assess data collection practices for non-musculoskeletal manifestations (NMMs), comorbidities, and safety outcomes in patients with psoriatic arthritis (PsA) and axial spondyloarthritis (axSpA) across 17 European registries, emphasizing the need for international collaboration for better treatment strategies.
- - A comprehensive survey with over 4,400 questionnaire items examined how 58 defined conditions were recorded in each registry, focusing on recording methods and the ability to link data to national registries.
- - The study found that while many registries recorded a variety of conditions consistently, Nordic countries showed potential for data linkage but had limited recording practices, while other regions maintained thorough documentation, paving the way
Article Synopsis
- The study aimed to evaluate the retention rates and remission outcomes of patients with axial spondyloarthritis (axSpA) and psoriatic arthritis (PsA) who started treatment with secukinumab over 24 and 48 months.
- Data was collected from 13 European registries, revealing that retention rates were around 51%-64%, and patients with no prior biologic treatments showed better outcomes compared to those with previous treatments.
- The findings suggest that secukinumab remains effective over four years, with higher success rates in treatment-naïve patients compared to those who had already tried other therapies.
Objectives: Recently published 2023 ACR/EULAR APS classification criteria emphasize the importance of quantifying single-, double-, and triple-antiphospholipid antibody positivity, distinguishing between IgG and IgM isotypes, and delineating moderate/high levels of anticardiolipin (aCL) and anti-β2 glycoprotein I (anti-β2GPI) antibodies. We aimed to establish clinically important moderate/high thresholds for aCL and anti-β2GPI IgG/IgM chemiluminescent immunoassays (CLIA), in particular QUANTA Flash, comparable to our in-house ELISAs used for over two decades, and to evaluate their diagnostic performance.
Methods: QUANTA Flash CLIA and in-house ELISAs were used to measure aCL and anti-β2GPI IgG/IgM.
Sex differences in patient-reported outcomes and the association with clinical factors in axial spondyloarthritis patients treated with tumour necrosis factor inhibitors.
Rheumatology (Oxford)
July 2024
Article Synopsis
Comparing DAPSA, DAPSA28, and DAS28-CRP in Patients With Psoriatic Arthritis Initiating a First Tumor Necrosis Factor Inhibitor Across Nine European Countries.
Arthritis Care Res (Hoboken)
November 2024
Article Synopsis
In this study, we optimized the dissociation of synovial tissue biopsies for single-cell omics studies and created a single-cell atlas of human synovium in inflammatory arthritis. The optimized protocol allowed consistent isolation of highly viable cells from tiny fresh synovial biopsies, minimizing the synovial biopsy drop-out rate. The synovium scRNA-seq atlas contained over 100,000 unsorted synovial cells from 25 synovial tissues affected by inflammatory arthritis, including 16 structural, 11 lymphoid, and 15 myeloid cell clusters.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFCut-Offs for Disease Activity States in Axial Spondyloarthritis With Ankylosing Spondylitis Disease Activity Score (ASDAS) Based on C-Reactive Protein and ASDAS Based on Erythrocyte Sedimentation Rate: Are They Interchangeable?
J Rheumatol
July 2024
Objective: Ankylosing Spondylitis Disease Activity Score based on C-reactive protein (ASDAS-CRP) is recommended over ASDAS based on erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ASDAS-ESR) to assess disease activity in axial spondyloarthritis (axSpA). Although ASDAS-CRP and ASDAS-ESR are not interchangeable, the same disease activity cut-offs are used for both. We aimed to estimate optimal ASDAS-ESR values corresponding to the established ASDAS-CRP cut-offs (1.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFArticle Synopsis
- The study looked at patients with PsA (psoriatic arthritis) who started a 2nd or 3rd TNFi (a type of medicine) and how many continued taking it after a year.
- Out of the patients studied, about 68% stayed on their 2nd TNFi and 66% on their 3rd TNFi after a year.
- The results showed that effectiveness of the new medicine depended on why they stopped taking the previous one, with better outcomes for those who stopped because the first medicine didn’t work as well after some time.
Patient-Reported Outcomes (PROs) and PRO Remission Rates in 12,262 Biologic-Naïve Patients With Psoriatic Arthritis Treated With Tumor Necrosis Factor Inhibitors in Routine Care.
J Rheumatol
April 2024
Article Synopsis
Article Synopsis
- In a clinical trial, patients with rheumatoid arthritis using the Janus kinase inhibitor tofacitinib experienced higher rates of adverse events compared to those on TNF inhibitors like adalimumab or etanercept.
- A study aimed to analyze treatment discontinuations due to adverse events among JAK inhibitors, TNF inhibitors, and other biological therapies in a real-world setting involving over 46,000 treatment courses.
- Results indicated that the rate of treatment discontinuation was similar for TNF inhibitors and JAK inhibitors overall, but certain JAK inhibitors showed different patterns, especially with older patients and specific cardiovascular risk factors, warranting cautious interpretation of the findings.
Article Synopsis
- The study aimed to assess and compare the effectiveness of oral glucocorticoids versus three types of biological DMARDs (bDMARDs) in treating patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA).
- Data from 12,334 patients on TNF-inhibitors, 2,100 on tocilizumab, and 3,229 on abatacept revealed a significant reduction in glucocorticoid use across all groups after one year, although the rate of withdrawal was slower than recommended.
- The findings indicate that while glucocorticoid usage declined, more emphasis is needed on properly tapering off glucocorticoids as patients achieve low disease activity, contrary to
Article Synopsis
- This study aimed to evaluate how effective tumor necrosis factor inhibitors (TNFi) are for patients with axial spondyloarthritis (axSpA), focusing on those in their second or third series of TNFi treatment and why they switched medications (due to lack of efficacy or adverse events).
- Data from 12 European registries was analyzed, showing that 12-month retention rates for second and third TNFi were similar (71%), but six-month remission rates were higher for the second TNFi (23%) compared to the third (16%).
- Patients who discontinued their first TNFi due to adverse events had better remission rates on the second TNFi compared to those who switched due to lack
The correct balance between reactive oxygen species and antioxidant defense in an organism is disturbed in oxidative stress. To assess oxidative balance in 36 SSc patients and 26 healthy controls (HCs), we measured reactive oxidative metabolites (ROMs), total antioxidant capacity (TAC), lipid peroxidation (measuring 4-HNE), and DNA oxidative damage (measuring 8-OHdG) in serum. Furthermore, DNA breaks in leukocytes of 35 SSc patients and 32 HCs were evaluated using COMET.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFArticle Synopsis
- This report compares treatment recommendations for two types of arthritis, PsA and axSpA, in different European countries.
- Rheumatologists from 15 countries answered a survey, showing that only a few countries fully followed the latest recommendations.
- The findings suggest that some countries might need to change their treatment guidelines to match the newer international ones better.
Background: Follow-up data on IgA vasculitis (IgAV) in adults are scarce. We aimed to investigate the outcome of adult IgAV in a well-defined cohort.
Methods: Data from histologically proven patients diagnosed between January 2010 and July 2022 with at least a 3-month follow-up were analyzed.
Antiphospholipid antibodies (aPL) comprise a group of autoantibodies that reflect prothrombotic risk in antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) but may also be present in a small proportion of healthy individuals. They are often transiently elevated in infections, including SARS-CoV-2, and may also be associated with vaccine-induced autoimmunity. Therefore, we aimed to investigate the dynamics of aPL in COVID-19 patients and in individuals (healthcare professionals-HCPs) after receiving BNT162b2 vaccine and to compare aPL levels and positivity with those found in APS patients.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: The management of giant cell arteritis (GCA) remains challenging and many patients require prolonged glucocorticoid treatment due to high disease relapse rates. We aimed to evaluate the role of leflunomide as a steroid-sparing agent in GCA.
Methods: This prospective open-label study included patients diagnosed with GCA between July 2014 and August 2020 and followed them for 96 weeks.