LONG-TERM EFFICACY AND SAFETY OF UPADACITINIB IN PATIENTS WITH PSORIATIC ARTHRITIS: 3-YEAR RESULTS FROM THE PHASE 3 SELECT-PsA 1 STUDY

BackgroundUpadacitinib (UPA) improved symptoms in patients (pts) with psoriatic arthritis (PsA) with prior inadequate response or intolerance to ≥1 non-biologic disease-modifying antirheumatic drug (nbDMARD-IR) through week (wk) 104 or 2 years of treatment in SELECT-PsA 1 [1].ObjectivesTo evaluate efficacy and safety of UPA vs adalimumab (ADA) through wk 152 or 3 years from the ongoing long-term open-label extension of SELECT-PsA 1.MethodsPts were randomized to receive UPA 15 mg (UPA15) or UPA 30 mg (UPA30) once daily, ADA 40 mg (ADA) every other wk, or placebo (PBO). At wk 24, PBO pts switched to UPA15 or UPA30. Following approval of UPA15, the protocol was amended so pts on UPA30 switched to UPA15 (earliest at wk 104). Efficacy was assessed through wk 152, and safety through June 13, 2022.ResultsOf 1704 pts randomized, 911 completed 152 wks of treatment. The proportions of pts achieving.≥20%/50%/70% improvement in American College of Rheumatology criteria (ACR20/50/70), minimal disease activity (MDA), and ≥75%/90%/100% improvement in Psoriasis Area and Severity Index at wk 152 were generally consistent with those at wk 1041. UPA had greater ACR20/50/70 and MDA responses vs ADA, and a greater mean change from baseline (BL) in Health Assessment Questionnaire-Disability Index, pt's assessment of pain, and Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Disease Activity Index vs ADA. Change from BL in modified total Sharp/van der Heijde score were similar between UPA30 and ADA, and numerically higher with UPA15 (Table 1). The overall UPA safety profile remained unchanged (Figure 1) [1,2]. UPA had numerically higher rates of serious infection (SI), herpes zoster (HZ), anemia, lymphopenia, creatine phosphokinase (CPK) elevation, and non-melanoma skin cancer (NMSC) vs ADA. Increases for SI, HZ, anemia, and CPK elevation with UPA were dose dependent. Rates of major adverse cardiovascular events, venous thromboembolism, and malignancy excluding NMSC were low and generally similar across groups. The most common cause of death was COVID-19.ConclusionEfficacy of UPA in nbDMARD-IR pts with PsA was maintained through 3 years of treatment. No new safety signals were identified.References[1]McInnes IB, et al. Rheumatol Ther 2022;1–18 [Epub ahead of print].[2]McInnes IB, et al. RMD Open 2021;7(3):e001838.Table 1.Efficacy endpoints at wk 152UPA15 (n=429)UPA30a (n=423)ADA (n=429)Proportion of pts (%)NRIAONRIAONRIAOACR20/50/7064.6/52.0/35.9*89.8/71.6/ 48.263.1/54.1*/ 35.787.9/74.4/ 47.861.1/46.6/ 28.786.2/65.2/ 39.8Minimal disease activity37.555.143.5*60.335.950.2PASI75/90/100b50.5/42.5/32.269.2/58.5/ 43.458.1/46.7/3 7.678.6/63.5/ 50.954.0/40.8/ 30.379.6/59.9/ 44.6Resolution of enthesitis by Leeds Enthesitis Indexc50.475.248.973.846.077.0Resolution of dactylitis by Leeds Dactylitis Indexd65.495.266.197.965.497.1Change from BLeMMRMAOMMRMAOMMRMAOHealth Assessment Questionnaire- Disability Index-0.51-0.55-0.53*-0.58-0.45-0.49Pt's assessment of pain (numeric rating scale)-3.3*-3.5-3.3*-3.6-2.8-3.0Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Disease Activity Indexf-3.09-3.27-3.16-3.54-2.81-2.71Modified total Sharp/van der Heijde score0.210.190.050.040.090.09aFollowing a protocol amendment, all pts on UPA30 switched to UPA15 (earliest switch at wk 104);data are presented by originally randomized group. bPts with psoriasis affecting ≥3% of body surface area at BL. cPts with LEI >0 at BL;resolution LEI=0. dPts with LDI >0 at BL;resolution LDI=0. eData shown as MMRM (least squares mean) and AO (mean). fPts with psoriatic spondylitis at BL. n value ranges: UPA15 (99–429), UPA30 (95–423), ADA (89–429). Nominal *p<0.05 UPA vs ADA.ACR20/50/70, ≥20%/50%/70% improvement in American College of Rheumatology criteria;ADA, adalimumab;AO, as observed;BL, baseline;MMRM, mixed effect model repeated measurement;NRI, non-responder imputation;PASI75/90/100, ≥75%/90%/100% improvement in Psoriasis Area and Severity Index;pt, patient;UPA15/30, upadacitinib 15/30 mg once daily;wk, weekAcknowledgementsAbbVie funded this study and participated in the study design, research, analysis, data collection, interpretation of data, and the review and approval of the publication. All authors had access to relevant data and participated in the drafting, review, and approval of this publication. No honoraria or payments were made for authorship. Medical writing support was provided by Carl Davies, MSc, of 2 the Nth (Cheshire, UK), and was funded by AbbVie.Disclosure of InterestsIain McInnes Grant/research support from: AbbVie, AstraZeneca, Bristol Myers Squibb, Celgene, Eli Lilly, Evelo, Causeway Therapeutics, Gilead, Janssen, Novartis, Pfizer, Sanofi Regeneron, and UCB Pharma, Koji Kato Employee of: AbbVie and may hold stock or options, Marina Magrey Consultant of: BMS, Eli Lilly, Janssen, Novartis, Pfizer, and UCB Pharma, Grant/research support from: AbbVie, Amgen, BMS, and UCB Pharma, Joseph F. Merola Consultant of: AbbVie, Arena, Avotres, Biogen, Bristol Myers Squibb, Celgene, Dermavant, Eli Lilly, EMD Sorono, Janssen, Leo Pharma, Merck, Novartis, Pfizer, Regeneron, Sanofi, Sun Pharma, and UCB Pharma, Mitsumasa Kishimoto Consultant of: AbbVie, Amgen, Asahi-Kasei Pharma, Astellas, Ayumi Pharma, BMS, Celgene, Chugai, Daiichi-Sankyo, Eisai, Eli Lilly, Gilead, Janssen, Kyowa Kirin, Novartis, Ono Pharma, Pfizer, Tanabe-Mitsubishi, and UCB Pharma, Derek Haaland Speakers bureau: AbbVie, Amgen, AstraZeneca, Bristol Myers Squibb, GlaxoSmithKline, Janssen, Novartis, Pfizer, Roche, Sanofi Genzyme, Takeda, Grant/research support from: AbbVie, Adiga Life Sciences, Amgen, Bristol Myers Squibb, Can-Fite Biopharma, Celgene, Eli Lilly, Gilead, GlaxoSmithKline, Janssen, Novartis, Pfizer, Regeneron, Sanofi-Genzyme, UCB;and has received honoraria or other fees from AbbVie, Amgen, AstraZeneca, Bristol Myers Squibb, Eli Lilly, GlaxoSmithKline, Janssen, Merck, Novartis, Pfizer, Roche, Sanofi Genzyme, Takeda, and UCB Pharma, Yihan Li Employee of: AbbVie and may hold stock or options, Yanxi Liu Employee of: AbbVie and may hold stock or options, Jianzhong Liu Employee of: AbbVie and may hold stock or options, Ralph Lippe Employee of: AbbVie and may hold stock or options, Peter Wung Employee of: AbbVie and may hold stock or options.

Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the performance of endoscopy in the Tohoku region of Japan

Objectives: The whole picture of the disturbance in endoscopy performance caused by the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic in Japan remains to be clarified. Therefore, the Japan Gastroenterological Endoscopy Society-Tohoku conducted this questionnaire survey in Tohoku region of Japan. Methods: A questionnaire on the number of diagnostic endoscopy procedures and resulting diagnosed cancers in 2019 and 2020 was sent to all guidance/guidance cooperation hospitals in the Japan Gastroenterological Endoscopy Society who worked in the Tohoku region. The percentage change was calculated by comparing the numbers in 2020 with those in 2019 (the pre-COVID-19 period). Results: Among the applicable 89 guidance/guidance cooperation hospitals, 83 (94%) returned the questionnaire. The number of endoscopy procedures promptly decreased to the nadir in April and May 2020 (during the first state of emergency in Japan);however, it recovered relatively quickly, within a few months after the state of emergency was lifted. Consequently, the annual reduction in the number of endoscopy procedures in 2020 (in comparison to 2019) was 10.1% for esophagogastroduodenoscopy and 7.9% for colonoscopy. The reduction in the number of diagnostic endoscopy procedures led to a 5.5% reduction in esophagogastric cancer and 2.7% in colorectal cancer. Conclusions: This is the most comprehensive survey on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the performance of endoscopy and the resulting diagnosis of cancer in Japan. Understanding the magnitude of the decline in endoscopic examinations and cancer detection due to the pandemic is critical to understanding how many people will ultimately be affected and establishing a strategy for providing endoscopy during national emergencies. Copyright © 2023 The Authors. DEN Open published by John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd on behalf of Japan Gastroenterological Endoscopy Society.

Proposal and Demonstration of Robot Collaboration Architecture Using RSNP

Nowadays, service robots are highly anticipated in an aging society with low birthrates due to a shortage of human workers. Furthermore, COVID-19 avoids daily human communication in person. To utilize service robots in such a society, several types of robots are necessary to cope with the aforementioned society's various problems. Through collaboration with various types of robots, we have proposed and demonstrated an architecture for providing a broader range of services through this study. This architecture eliminates robot interface differences and allows the connection of various robots with a common communication protocol. In the teleoperation experiment, we could connect various types of robots manufactured by different companies using a general-purpose interface unit and we could teleoperate them via the Internet. We also confirmed in the collaboration experiment that the robots can be connected regardless of their functions by managing them according to their functions. Our architecture has verified the function to make collaboration of different types of robots both in teleoperation and collaborative tasks by different robots. In the future, we will conduct experiments to evaluate the practical services that service robots can provide in actual facilities such as shopping malls. © 2023 IEEE.

Questionnaire Survey on Alternative On-campus Training due to the Spread of COVID-19 Infection

[Purpose] Due to the spread of the COVID-19 infection, off-campus clinical early exposure training became impossible. The educational effect of alternative training on-campus as an emergency measure was investigated. [Participants and Methods] The subjects were 102 first-year Department of Physical Therapy students and 8 external teachers. A questionnaire survey of the subjective learning achievement and learning content was performed. [Results] The subjective learning achievement in the affective, cognitive, and psychomotor domains were all answered positively. Experience gained was in the whole affective domain, rehabilitation in various fields, the way of communication, symptom and physical therapy of patients through videos. The experience not gained was communication with real patients, the tension and atmosphere of the medical workplace, and details of patients' condition. [Conclusion] It is important to improve the quality of on-campus education for clinical practice. © 2022, Society of Physical Therapy Science (Rigaku Ryoho Kagakugakkai). All rights reserved.

Tourism development in Japan: Themes, issues and challenges

This significant and timely volume focuses on the unique trajectory of tourism development in Japan, which has been characterized by an historical emphasis on promoting both domestic and international tourism to Japanese tourists, followed by the more recent policy of competing aggressively in the international incoming tourist market. Initial chapters present an overview of past and present tourism, including policy and research perspectives. Thematic perspectives on tourism and specific contexts and places in which tourism occurs are then examined. Strains of Japanese tourism such as sport, surf, forest, mountain, urban, tea, pilgrimage and even whaling heritage tourism are among those analyzed. The book also explores tourism’s role in confronting difficult pasts and presents, and the challenges facing the development of tourism in contemporary Japan. A short postscript outlines some of the challenges and possible future directions tourism in Japan may take in light of the COVID-19 crisis. Written by a team of well-known editors and contributors, including academics from Japan, this volume will be of great interest to upper-students and researchers and academics in development studies, cultural studies, geography and tourism. © 2021 selection and editorial matter, Richard Sharpley and Kumi Kato;individual chapters, the contributors.