Olumiant®

Olumiant (generic name: baricitinib) is a Janus kinase (JAK) inhibitor prescribed to treat adults with moderate to severe rheumatoid arthritis (RA) who have not responded well enough to or could not tolerate treatment with a tumor necrosis factor (TNF) antagonist.

Disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs) are a first-line treatment that helps prevent joint damage, and this is usually tried first for patients with RA. For patients who either cannot tolerate the side effects of DMARDs or who did not see sufficient improvement from this form of treatment, JAK inhibitors are a new form of DMARD that can be prescribed since they block inflammatory actions from even starting.

There are currently no cures for rheumatoid arthritis. The primary aim, for now, is to reduce the pain and swelling and to slow down the progress. JAK inhibitors are the best current treatment for achieving this.

In the US, doctors may prescribe Olumiant to treat alopecia areata off-label. The FDA hasn’t approved Olumiant for off-label use in the treatment of alopecia, but it is already widely prescribed and approved in other countries.