According to a recent study published in the January 2021 issue of ‘Rheumatology International’, both adalimumab plus methotrexate or placebo plus methotrexate offered similar changes in lipid levels during 1 year in early rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients.

The randomised controlled OPERA trial under consideration compared the changes in low-density lipoprotein cholesterol and other lipids in RA patients randomised to a 1-year treat-to-target approach with either combination of adalimumab and methotrexate or placebo and methotrexate.

A total of 180 early and treatment-naïve RA patients were given methotrexate 20 mg once a week along with either placebo or adalimumab 40 mg given subcutaneously every other week. These RA patients were treated to tight control of inflammation for over a year. Variation in lipid levels were assessed via mixed linear models in accordance with the intention-to-treat (ITT) population.

The ITT population comprised of 86 adalimumab plus methotrexate patients and 88 placebo plus methotrexate patients. Notable variations were observed in lipid concentrations i.e. total cholesterol (LDL and HDL); very-low-density (VLDL) and non-high-density lipoprotein cholesterol and; triglycerides in RA patients.