The results of the IgG-Four (round 3) are here! To see how your bracket is doing, head over to the RheumMadness Tourneytopia website.
The left side of the bracket was madness. ADIRA won in a 5-2 vote over EMBRACE, despite only THREE participants picking ADIRA to make it to the finals. Yes, you’re reading that correctly: more Blue Ribbon Panel (BRP) members picked ADIRA to win this round than the 111 participants who submitted a bracket! Did you know that Cinderella is actually from the Mediterranean? No, obviously you didn’t.
The right side of the bracket was the complete opposite. NORD-STAR won in a 4-3 vote over SAPHYR, and participants agreed, with NORD-STAR receiving the most participant picks (20%), followed by SAPHYR (18%).
Full results for reach matchup are reviewed below, including how the panel voted compared to participant picks. Huge thanks to our amazing panel for their thoughtful consideration, and for being willing to take the heat for each bracket buster!
Matchup 1: ADIRA defeats EMBRACE, 5-2
Amazingly, only 3 participants (3%) predicted that ADIRA would win this side of the bracket!
A complete breakdown of participant picks in this round:
- ARCTIC-REWIND: 36%
- COVID Vax Guide: 18%
- EMBRACE: 13%
- LLDAS: 12%
- GCA Score: 8%
- Precision OA: 6%
- VITAL: 5%
- ADIRA: 3%
Comments from the Blue Ribbon Panel in favor of ADIRA
- Information on anti-inflammatory diet can help all patients and it’s detailed so very clinically applicable.
- This was a tough choice! Both write up summaries were excellent and summarized important aspects of their respective studies. Both have important implications. I gave my nod to ADIRA due to their fantastic graphic. Lots of images and few words make for a great graphic
- The study is relevant to almost all patients we see in rheumatology practice and sets the stage for new studies on this important topic.
- I picked this since i will use the information provided by the trial in my everyday practice, while the results of other trial are only applicable to a smaller proportion of patients that I see.
- Mediterranean diet is a hot topic for patients, and so widely sought after. the data will (and are being) extrapolated to all other autoimmune diseases – and this study empowers patients to improve their disease through dietary changes.
Comments from the Blue Ribbon Panel in favor of EMBRACE:
- Revamped the understanding of treatment LN and tackled social norms, close battle but embrace wins the round
- Setting the standard for racial equity in clinical trials.
Matchup 2: NORD-STAR defeats SAPHYR, 4-3
This side of the bracket was the complete opposite, as NORD-STAR got the most participant picks (20%), with SAPHYR close behind (18%).
A complete breakdown of participant picks in this round:
- NORD-STAR: 20%
- SAPHYR: 18%
- ORAL Surveillance: 14%
- PRODERM: 13%
- Comparing ULT: 12%
- MTX Myths: 9%
- RA-ILD Review: 8%
- INBUILD: 6%
Comments from the Blue Ribbon Panel in favor of ADIRA
- NORD-STAR challenges the “methotrexate-first” treatment paradigm for rheumatoid arthritis and provides evidence for starting a TNF inhibitor or abatacept along with methotrexate in patients who are newly diagnosed with RA.
- NORD-STAR for the win!! Hope we will see more head to head trials like this as they are so informative.
- First-line biologics in early RA changes treatment paradigms.
- Both studies are very important and helpful in clinical practice. I chose NORT-STAR for the high quality of their graphic. Looks professional. Uses much fewer words to convey the highlights of the study
Comments from the Blue Ribbon Panel in favor of EMBRACE:
- The SAPHYR trial is a landmark study in a disease without many. Completely revamped the management of PMR. Nord star was a big one, but proved what was already known of the therapies at time. Saphyr takes it with a unique quadruple double to win.
- To be clear, both of these papers are impactful and I had a hard time choosing. Like a LeBron and Steph Curry situation. It came down to which changed my clinical practice more and while I do like evidence supporting bDMARD use in treatment naive RA patients, I think making a case for the first biologic for PMR is that game-winning shot past halfcourt. You can’t help but love it!
- Novel therapy for an old disease with nothing other than steroids
What’s up next?
