s.
In clinical studies using single and multiple infliximab doses ranging from 1 to 20 mg/kg, antibodies to infliximab were detected in 14% of patients with any immunosuppressant therapy, and in 24% of patients without immunosuppressant therapy. In rheumatoid arthritis patients who received the recommended repeated treatment dose regimens with methotrexate, 8% of patients developed antibodies to infliximab. In psoriatic arthritis patients who received 5 mg/kg with and without methotrexate, antibodies occurred overall in 15% of patients (antibodies occurred in 4% of patients receiving methotrexate and in 26% of patients not receiving methotrexate at baseline). In Crohn's disease patients who received maintenance treatment, antibodies to infliximab occurred overall in 3.3% of patients receiving immunosuppressants and in 13.3% of patients not receiving immunosuppressants. The antibody incidence was 2-3 fold higher for patients treated episodically. Due to methodological limitations, a negative assay did not exclude the presence of antibodies to infliximab. Some patients who developed high titres of antibodies to infliximab had evidence of reduced efficacy. In psoriasis patients treated with infliximab as a maintenance regimen in the absence of concomitant immunomodulators, approximately 28% developed antibodies to infliximab (see section 4.4: “Infusion reactions and hypersensitivity”).
Infections: Tuberculosis, bacterial infections, including sepsis and pneumonia, invasive fungal, viral, and other opportunistic infections have been observed in patients receiving Remicade. Some of these infections have been fatal; the most frequently reported opportunistic infections with a mortality rate of > 5% include pneumocystosis, candidiasis, listeriosis and aspergillosis (see section 4.4).
In clinical studies 36% of infliximab-treated patients were treated for infections compared with 25% of placebo-treated patients.
In rheumatoid arthritis clinical studies, the incidence of serious infections including pneumonia was higher in infliximab plus methotrexate treated patients compared with methotrexate alone especially at doses of 6 mg/kg or greater (see section 4.4).
In post-marketing spontaneous reporting, infections are the most common serious adverse event. Some of the cases have resulted in a fatal outcome. Nearly 50% of reported deaths have been associated with infection. Cases of tuberculosis, sometimes fatal, including miliary tuberculosis and tuberculosis with extra-pulmonary location have been reported (see section 4.4).
Malignancies and lymphoproliferative disorders: In clinical studies with infliximab in which 5,780 patients were treated, representing 5,494 patient years, 5 cases of lymphomas and 26 non-lymphoma malignancies were detected as compared with no lymphomas and 1 non-lymphoma malignancy in 1,600 placebo-treated patients representing 941 patient years.
In long-term safety follow-up of clinical studies with infliximab of up to 5 years, representing 6,234 patients-years (3,210 patients), 5 cases of lymphoma and 38 cases of non-lymphoma malignancies were reported.
Cases of malignancies, including lymphoma, have also been reported in the post-marketing setting (see section 4.4).
In an exploratory clinical study involving patients with moderate to severe COPD who were either current smokers or ex-smokers, 157 adult patients were treated with Remicade at doses similar to |
