Barbulescu (2022)

Rheumatoid Arthritis

Rheumatology • National_Database Data • Sweden

Study Metrics
Total Sample 509
Treatment Group 313
Control Group 196
Covariates 32
PICO Comparisons 2
Quality Indicators
Transparency High
DAG Usage No
QBA Performed No

Study Information

First Author: Barbulescu
Publication Year: 2022
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/cpt.2673
Preprint: No preprint

Institution & Funding

Institution Type: Academic
Institutions: Karolinska Institutet, Karolinska University Hospital, University of Iceland, Brigham and Women's Hospital/Harvard Medical School
Funding: Declared: Public
Funding Institutions: This work was supported by the Swedish Research Council (grant 2016-01355). S.C.K. is supported by the National Institutes of Health (NIH; grant K24AR078959)

Study Context

Disease: Rheumatoid Arthritis
Disease Category: Rheumatology
Data Type: national_database
Geography: Sweden
Eligible Sample: 509.0
Number of Treatments: 2

Analytical Methods

Missing Data Method: Multiple imputation
Matching Method: IPTW
Analysis Method: logistic regression
Estimand: Not defined

Quality Methods

Directed Acyclic Graph (DAG) Not Used
Quantitative Bias Analysis (QBA) Not Performed

Target Trial Information

Target Trial Name: SWEFOT
Registration Number: CT20080004
Target Trial DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/s0140-6736(09)60944-2

TTE vs RCT Comparisons

Detailed comparison between Target Trial Emulation results and corresponding Randomized Controlled Trial outcomes.

European Alliance of Associations for Rheumatology (EULAR) good or moderate responders at 9 months
SWEFOT
RR Efficacy
Population

Patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA)

Intervention

Infliximab added to methotrexate therapy

Comparison

Sulfasalazine (SSZ) + hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) added to methotrexate therapy

Outcome

European Alliance of Associations for Rheumatology (EULAR) good or moderate responders at 9 months

RCT Result

1.22

95% CI: [0.98, 1.53]


vs
TTE Result

1.27

95% CI: [0.99, 1.63]

Concordance Assessment
Confidence Interval Overlap: Yes
CIs overlap, suggesting concordance
Direction Agreement: Same Direction
Both point to similar conclusion
European Alliance of Associations for Rheumatology (EULAR) good responders at 9 months
SWEFOT
RR Efficacy
Population

Patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA)

Intervention

Infliximab added to methotrexate therapy

Comparison

Sulfasalazine (SSZ) + hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) added to methotrexate therapy

Outcome

European Alliance of Associations for Rheumatology (EULAR) good responders at 9 months

RCT Result

1.59

95% CI: [1.10, 2.30]


vs
TTE Result

1.48

95% CI: [0.98, 2.24]

Concordance Assessment
Confidence Interval Overlap: Yes
CIs overlap, suggesting concordance
Direction Agreement: Same Direction
Both point to similar conclusion

Transparency Indicators

Protocol Registration Available
Data Sharing Not Available
Code Sharing Not Available
Overall Transparency Score:
High Transparency - This study meets good transparency standards.

Conflicts & Funding

Conflicts of Interest: Declared: Financial
COI Institutions: AbbVie, Bristol Myers Squibb, MSD, Eli Lilly, Pfizer, Roche, Samsung Bioepis, UCB, Roche/Genentech, deCODE genetics
Funding Source: Declared: Public
Funding Institutions: This work was supported by the Swedish Research Council (grant 2016-01355). S.C.K. is supported by the National Institutes of Health (NIH; grant K24AR078959)