Effect of Infliximab Therapy on Employment, Time Lost from Work, and Productivity in Patients with Psoriatic Arthritis

Objective: To examine the effect of infliximab on employment status, time lost from work, and productivity in a double-blind, placebo-controlled study of patients with active psoriatic arthritis (PsA).

Methods: Two hundred adult patients with PsA were randomized to intravenous infusions of either infliximab 5 mg/kg or placebo at Weeks 0, 2, 6, 14, and 22, with early escape at Week 16. Employment status, workdays missed, and productivity were assessed at baseline and at Week 14. The effect of PsA on daily productivity was assessed using a visual analog scale.

Results: At baseline, similar percentages of patients in both treatment groups were employed and similar percentages missed workdays; the mean productivity score at baseline was similar between groups (roughly 3 on a scale of 0 to 10). At Week 14, median productivity increased significantly in the infliximab group compared with the placebo group (67.5% vs 9.2%; p < 0.0001). Compared with the placebo group, higher proportions of patients in the infliximab group improved employment status from unemployed at baseline to employed at Week 14 (11.5% vs 0%; p = 0.084) and from part-time to full-time employment (30.0% vs 10.0%; p = 0.582). Among patients employed at baseline and Week 14, a lower proportion of patients in the infliximab group than in the placebo group had missed workdays in the 4 weeks prior to Week 14 (p = 0.138).

Conclusion: After 14 weeks of treatment, infliximab improved productivity in patients with active PsA. There was also a trend toward increased employment and reduced time lost from work for patients treated with infliximab.