Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis (JIA)
JIA is a condition characterised by inflammation of one or more joints for which there is no known cause.
Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis (JIA)
JIA is a condition characterised by inflammation of one or more joints for which there is no known cause.
Several types of arthritis fall under the term JIA, which all present under the age of 16 years. It is a chronic disease, and around half of children will continue to suffer from arthritis as adults. There are approximately 12,000 children (1 in 1000) in the UK under 16 years of age who have JIA, with 1 in 10,000 children diagnosed each year.
There are many treatments for JIA, including anti-inflammatory drugs, disease-modifying drugs, and biologics. However, not all children respond to these drugs in the same way, and some may develop side effects. Therefore, it is crucial to continue looking for new treatments.
EATC4Children led a national HTA-funded study of ‘Steroid Induction Regime in JIA (SIR-JIA); HTA14/167/0 (CI: E. Baildam). This feasibility study identified the need to conduct a future randomised controlled trial to assess steroid treatment regimens in JIA.
As a result of this feasibility study, the STAR-JIA trial was developed in line with the patient priorities that were identified. Co-Chief Investigators Clare Pain, and A V Ramanan, lead the STAR-JIA trial. STAR-JIA is a multi-site, randomised controlled trial. The overall aim of this trial is to compare the effectiveness, safety and cost-effectiveness of intravenous versus oral corticosteroid treatment for children and young people with new onset polyarticular JIA.
The trial is funded by the National Institute for Health Research's Health Technology Assessment Programme (NIHR HTA) and is sponsored by Alder Hey Hospital. The day-to-day running of the trial, monitoring and analysis is being coordinated by a team at the Liverpool Clinical Trials Centre (LCTC).
Find more information, and the trial animation, on their website.
Early phase JIA clinical trials that the EATC4Children are involved in include:
- Secukinumab Safety and Efficacy in Juvenile Psoriatic Arthritis (JPsA) and Enthesitis-related Arthritis (ERA). This is a double-blind, placebo-controlled, event-driven randomized withdrawal study to investigate the efficacy and safety of secukinumab treatment in the JIA categories of JPsA and ERA. (CI: A. Ramanan)
- A Repeated Dose-finding Study of Sarilumab in Children and Adolescents With Systemic Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis (sJIA). This study aims to to describe the pharmacokinetic (PK) profile of sarilumab in patients aged 1-17 years with sJIA in order to identify the dose and regimen for adequate treatment of this population. (CI: A. Ramanan)
- An Open-label, Ascending, Repeated Dose-finding Study of Sarilumab in Children and Adolescents With Polyarticular-course Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis (pcJIA). This study aims to describe the pharmacokinetic profile of sarilumab in patients aged 2-17 years with pcJIA in order to identify the dose and regimen for adequate treatment of this population (CI: A. Ramanan)