Induction Therapy With Anti-TNFα vs Cyclophosphamide in Severe Behçet Disease

NCT03371095 · Status: COMPLETED · Phase: PHASE3 · Type: INTERVENTIONAL · Enrollment: 53

Last updated 2023-07-03

No results posted yet for this study

Summary

Behçet's disease (BD) is a systemic vasculitis of arterial and venous vessels of any size, involving young patients (from 15 to 45 years). BD significantly increases morbidity and mortality. Therapeutic management of BD depends on the clinical presentation and organ involved. Although colchicine, nonsteroidal antiinflammatory agents and topical treatments are often sufficient for mucocutaneous and joint involvement, more aggressive approach with immunosuppressive agents is warranted for severe manifestations. Early recognition and vigorous use of immunosuppressives with high dose steroids have changed the prognosis of patients with severe BD. BD is a severe systemic vasculitis leading to blindness in up to 20% at 4 years and a 5-year mortality rate of 15% in patients with major vessel or neurological involvement. Cyclophosphamide has been used for life-threatening BD for 40 years. However, the outcome of severe complications of BD is poor. The European League Against Rheumatism (EULAR) recommendation for the management of BD advocated cyclophosphamide plus glucocorticoids for life-threatening manifestations (i.e neurological and/or major vessel involvement). TNFa antagonists have been used with success in severe and/or resistant cases. In addition, the incidence of blindness in BD has been dramatically reduced in the recent years with the use of anti-TNF. However, there is no firm evidence or randomized controlled trials directly addressing the best induction immunosuppressive therapy in severe BD manifestations. The investigators therefore aimed to assess the best induction therapy in severe and difficult to treat BD patients. The investigators hypothesize that up to 70% of the patients with life-threatening manifestations of BD receiving these compounds \[anti-TNFa or cyclophosphamide\] will achieve a complete remission of BD at 6 months and with less than 0.1 mg/kg/day of prednisone.

ITAC, is the first randomized prospective, head to head study, comparing infliximab, to cyclophosphamide in severe manifestations of BD. There is no firm evidence or randomized controlled trials directly addressing the best induction immunosuppressive therapy in severe BD. Cyclophosphamide failed to demonstrate sustainable remission over 70 % of life threatening BD cases. There is little published information on use of immunosuppressants other than cyclophosphamide for severe BD. TNFa antagonists have been used with success in severe and/or resistant cases. TNFa expression correlates with BD activity and other immunological data provide a strong rationale for targeting BD with biologics. Despite a strong rationale, these compounds are not yet approved in BD, which guarantees the innovative nature of this study that aims selecting or dropping any arm when evidence of efficacy already exists.

Conditions

  • Behcet's Disease
  • Vasculitis

Interventions

DRUG

Infliximab

Use of infliximab instead of cyclophosphamide

DRUG

Cyclophosphamide

Use of cyclophosphamide

Sponsors & Collaborators

  • Assistance Publique - Hôpitaux de Paris

    lead OTHER

Study Design

Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
NONE
Model
PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age
12 Years
Sex
ALL
Healthy Volunteers
No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start
2018-05-25
Primary Completion
2021-12-24
Completion
2022-04-11

Countries

  • France

Study Locations

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Entities

Read the full study record

This page highlights key information. For complete eligibility criteria, study locations, investigator contacts, and the full protocol, visit the original record on ClinicalTrials.gov.

View NCT03371095 on ClinicalTrials.gov