Table 2 Characteristics of patients that initiated biologics, oral and SQ MTX in the previous 12 monthsa
Biologic arm | SQ MTX | Oral MTX | |
|---|---|---|---|
N = 218 | N = 49 | N = 115 | |
Biologic or novel small molecule initiated | n/a | n/a | |
Tocilizumab | 13 (6.0) | ||
Certolizumab | 11 (5.1) | ||
Etanercept | 51 (23.4) | ||
Adalimumab | 53 (24.3) | ||
Abatacept | 33 (15.1) | ||
Infliximab | 22 (10.1) | ||
Rituximab | 11 (5.1) | ||
Golimumab | 13 (6.0) | ||
Tofacitinib | 11 (5.1) | ||
Frequency of MTX doses taken in last 4 weeks | |||
4 doses | 133 (61.0) | 31 (63.3) | 90 (78.3) |
3 doses | 7 (3.2) | 1 (2.0) | 9 (7.8) |
2 doses | 10 (4.6) | 1 (2.0) | 5 (4.4) |
1 dose | 1 (0.5) | 2 (4.1) | 2 (1.7) |
0 dosesb | 66 (30.3) | 14 (28.6) | 9 (7.8) |
Not sure | 1 (0.5) | 0 (0.0) | 0 (0.0) |
Current MTX dose/week (mg) | |||
None | 95 (43.5) | 14 (28.6) | 9 (8.0) |
Unknown | 9 (4.1) | 3 (6.1) | 5 (4.4) |
< = 10 | 36 (16.5) | 8 (16.3) | 22 (19.1) |
> 10– < 20 | 42 (19.3) | 7 (14.3) | 44 (38.3) |
> =20 | 28 (12.8) | 17 (34.7) | 44 (38.3) |
Reasons that patients missed 1 or more MTX doses in the last 4 weeksc | N/A | ||
Forgot | 1 (2.0) | 0 (0.0) | |
Side effects | 2 (4.1) | 1 (0.9) | |
Pharmacy shortage | 1 (2.0) | 0 (0.0) | |
Doing well | 1 (2.0) | 1 (0.9) | |
Couldn’t afford | 1 (2.0) | 1 (0.9) | |
Other reasons | 2 (4.1) | 4 (3.5) | |
Willingness to pay for MTX | N/A | ||
$0 | 1 (2.0) | 4 (3.5) | |
$10 | 7 (14.3) | 13 (11.3) | |
Up to $25 | 19 (38.8) | 34 (29.6) | |
$25–$40 | 5 (10.2) | 26 (22.6) | |
$40–$80 | 2 (4.1) | 6 (5.2) | |
Did injections hurt? | N/A | ||
No, never | 55 (25.2) | 11 (22.4) | |
Yes, rarely | 34 (15.6) | 14 (28.6) | |
Yes, sometime | 76 (34.9) | 15 (30.6) | |
Yes, often | 53 (24.3) | 9 (18.4) | |