Efficacy and Safety of Ozoralizumab versus Moxibustion for Rheumatoid Arthritis

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic inflammatory disease that symmetrically damages the synovial membrane, affecting approximately thirteen percent of the global population. Systemic complications and substantial declines in quality of life may ensue from untreated RA. This study investigates the safety and efficacy of moxibustion and ozoralizumab in reducing disease activity scores in RA patients. Between July and November 2023, we performed an extensive search across four online databases (PubMed, Cochrane, Scopus, and ProQuest) utilizing keywords, reference searches, and other methodologies in alignment with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. The obtained randomized controlled trials (RCTs) have been assessed using the Cochrane Risk of Bias 2 Risk of Bias Tools (ROB2). MetaInsight version 5.2.1 was employed to conduct this indirect network meta-analysis, which employed mean difference (MD) as summary statistics. This study demonstrated that ozoralizumab had a more significant effect on rheumatoid arthritis than placebo, as measured by DAS28 (MD=-1.88; 95% CI -2.24-(-1.52)) and moxibustion (MD=-0.69; 95% CI=-1.07-0.31). Ozoralizumab exhibited mild, moderate, and severe side effects, whereas moxibustion exhibited modest side effects compared to the placebo. In summary, ozoralizumab and moxibustion decreased DAS28 scores in rheumatoid arthritis patients, with ozoralizumab being the more effective treatment. Nevertheless, the adverse effects of ozoralizumab were more diverse than those of moxibustion.