The Oxo designed Cimzia (certolizumab pegol) syringe has been found more comfortable and easier to inject than the conventional prefilled syringe for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients in a Rapid 2 study.
Cimzia selectively neutralizes the pathophysiological effects of human TNF-alpha.
The certolizumab pegol prefilled syringe incorporates several features for RA patients including a non-slip finger grip, a finger loop on the needle shield and a larger than usual plunger.
The pivotal study, which enrolled 23 RA patients, is designed to compare preferences and injection forces using a conventional syringe and the OXO designed certolizumab pegol syringe.
One syringe, referred to as the RAPID 2 syringe, was a standard pre-filled ‘off-the-shelf’ syringe.
The second syringe was created by Smart Design, OXO, and UCB.
Injections were performed using simulated skin pads.
As part of the study, a patient questionnaire evaluated perceptions of the two prefilled syringes and compared patient views on ease-of-use, physical characteristics and general preferences across twenty different attributes.
The patients agreed that the OXO designed syringe provided more control and the larger design of the plunger made injections easier.