Efficacy and safety of olokizumab in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis in real-world clinical practice in Kazakhstan

Objective: to assess the efficacy and safety of olokizumab (OKZ) in routine clinical practice in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) in Kazakhstan. Material and methods. A 24-week, single-center observational study included 26 RA patients with moderate to high disease activity according to DAS28. All patients received OKZ 64 mg subcutaneously every 4 weeks in combination with methotrexate. Disease activity according to DAS28- CRP was assessed at baseline and at weeks 4, 12, and 24. Results and discussion. Women comprised 88% of the study population. All patients were seropositive for rheumatoid factor and/or anti-cyclic citrullinated peptide antibodies. The median age was 53 [24; 73] years, and the mean baseline DAS28-CRP score was 5.5±1.3. By week 24, a good or moderate response according to EULAR criteria was observed in 19 (73.0%) patients. DAS28-CRP remission was achieved in 50.0% of cases. OKZ was generally well tolerated, with no unexpected adverse events reported. Conclusion. This real-world study confirmed the efficacy and safety of OKZ in a predominantly Asian population of RA patients. The results are consistent with those of previous randomized controlled trials, supporting the use of OKZ in routine clinical practice as an effective and well-tolerated treatment option for RA.