What is Kevzara (sarilumab) for?
Kevzara (sarilumab) is indicated for the treatment of patients with moderately to severely active rheumatoid arthritis who have had an inadequate response or intolerance to one or more disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs)1.
How does Kevzara (sarilumab) work?
Kevzara (sarilumab) is a human monoclonal antibody — an interleukin-6 (IL-6) receptor antagonist. IL-6 is a cytokine — a small protein involved in the communication among cells2 — that, in excess and over time, can contribute to the inflammation associated with rheumatoid arthritis. Sarilumab binds to the interleukin-6 receptor (IL-6R) and has been shown to inhibit IL-6R mediated signaling3.
Where has Kevzara (sarilumab) been approved?
Kevzara (sarilumab) was approved for the treatment of adult patients with moderately to severely active rheumatoid arthritis (RA) who have had an inadequate response or intolerance to one or more DMARDs, such as methotrexate (MTX)1 by:
FDA (USA) on May 22, 20173
EMA (EU) on June 23, 20175
How is Kevzara (sarilumab) taken?
Kevzara (sarilumab) may be used as monotherapy or in combination with methotrexate (MTX) or other conventional DMARDs.
The standard dosage is:
200 mg once every two weeks, administered as a subcutaneous injection
Dose modification might be considered for certain patients
Sarilumab is not recommended in patients with certain conditions (ANC less than 2000/mm3, platelets less than 150,000/mm3 or liver transaminases above 1.5 times ULN).
Complete information about sarilumab dosage and administration can be found in the resources section.
Consult your treating doctor for personalised dosing.
Are there any known side effects of Kevzara (sarilumab)?
Patients treated with Kevzara (sarilumab) are at increased risk of developing serious infections that may lead to hospitalization or death.
The most common adverse reactions (incidence of at least 3%) are3:
neutropenia
increased ALT (alanine aminotransferase)
injection site erythema
upper respiratory infections
urinary tract infections.
