AbbVie Says Late-stage Rheumatoid Arthritis Trial Had Positive Results

AbbVie Inc. said premarket Wednesday that its rheumatoid arthritis drug had positive results in a late-stage clinical trial. The drug, upadacitinib, is intended for patients with moderate to severe rheumatoid arthritis who have had an insufficient response to treatment with disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs, which are supposed to protect the patient's joints. In the clinical trial, which lasted 12 weeks, both doses of the drug met the study's primary endpoint, and key secondary endpoints were also met, the company said. The company said it found no new safety signals during the trial, and that serious adverse events occurred at 4% and 3% rates in the two dose arms, compared with a 2% rate in the placebo arm. AbbVie plans to present full results from the trial at an upcoming medical meeting and publish them in a peer-reviewed publication. AbbVie shares were up a scant 0.4% in premarket trade. Shares have risen 6.6% over the last three months, compared with a 2.6% rise in the S&P 500 .