A Study of the Safety and Effectiveness of Infliximab (Remicade) in Patients With Giant Cell Arteritis

May 16, 2011 updated by: Centocor, Inc.

A Randomized, Double-Masked, Placebo-Controlled, Multicenter Study of the Safety and Efficacy of Infliximab in Subjects With Giant Cell Arteritis

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the safety and efficacy (effectiveness) of Infliximab (Remicade) in patients with Giant Cell Arteritis. Infliximab (Remicade) targets specific proteins in the body's immune system to help control the development of inflammation to help reduce painful disease.

Study Overview

Status

Terminated

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

The purpose of this study is to see if infliximab is safe and effective in treating GCA. Currently, the only treatment for GCA is prednisone. GCA is a long lasting inflammatory disease. The cause is unknown. It may affect all the arteries, but it focuses on the big vessels such as those around the heart, the vessels in the neck and head, and their major branches. It can lead to vision loss, blindness, stroke, stenosis (narrowing of blood vessels) and aneurysms (a weakening in the lining of the blood vessel wall, which may eventually lead to rupture of the blood vessel). The damage to the arteries is caused by an immune response. A naturally occurring substance in the immune system called "tumor necrosis factor alpha" (TNFa) plays a significant role in this immune response against the blood vessels. This response is thought to cause the long-lasting inflammation (irritation and swelling of the vessels). By blocking the effect of TNFa we think that we may reduce the signs and symptoms associated with GCA. This trial will study patients who are stable on prednisone treatment by evaluating whether infliximab can control their symptoms as the dose of prednisone is reduced. Patients will receive infusions of either 5mg/kg of infliximab or placebo at weeks 0, 2, 6, 14, 22, 30, 38, and 46. Safety evaluations will be performed at specified intervals throughout the study and will consist of laboratory tests, vital signs (such as blood pressure), physical examinations and the occurrence and severity of adverse events as well as other study specific procedures. Patients will receive receive infusions of either 5mg/kg infliximab or placebo infusions at weeks 0, 2, 6, 14, 22, 30, 38, and 46.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

44

Phase

  • Phase 2

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

50 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Patients who have a diagnosis of Giant Cell Arteritis (GCA)
  • Patients who have a diagnosis of GCA of = 4 weeks' duration
  • Patients who are receiving = 40 mg/day of prednisone/prednisolone Exclusion Criteria:
  • Patients must not have a prior diagnosis of GCA > 4 weeks
  • Patients must not have failed to respond to glucocorticosteroid therapy within 5 days of initiation of therapy.

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Double

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
The proportion of relapse-free patients through Week 22 .

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Proportion of relapse-free subjects through Week 54, time to first relapse, levels of biochemical markers of inflammation and disease activity (eg, ESR, C-reactive protein [CRP], interleukin [IL]-6) , cumulative dose of prednisone (or equivalents)

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Centocor, Inc.

Collaborators

The Cleveland Clinic

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

Helpful Links

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start

November 1, 2003

Study Completion (Actual)

July 1, 2005

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

February 2, 2004

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

February 3, 2004

First Posted (Estimate)

February 4, 2004

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Estimate)

May 17, 2011

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

May 16, 2011

Last Verified

April 1, 2010

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • CR003139

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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