Vamorolone showed promising results to effectively treat inflammation whilst minimising negative side compared to current treatments.
2 April 2025•2 min read
Early research has found that a new steroid drug, used for treating Duchenne Muscular dystrophy, has shown significant promise in treating inflammatory diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis.
Research published today in [_Rheumatology_](https://academic.oup.com/rheumatology/advance-article/doi/10.1093/rheumatology/keaf129/8102198) revealed that Vamorolone, a glucocorticoid, showed to be just as effective as standard glucocorticoids to treat inflammation but with minimised negative side effects.
Glucocorticoids are some of the most widely used drugs to treat patients with a diverse range of inflammatory diseases. Unfortunately, whilst they effectively reduce inflammation and pain, they can also cause severe side effects. These include muscle and bone loss that can increase the risks of falls and fractures.
Vamorolone is a unique metabolism-resistant steroid approved by the FDA which appears to provide significant anti-inflammatory benefits while causing fewer harmful effects on muscle and bone.
The study, funded by the Foundation to Eradicate Duchenne and utilising mouse models with chronic rheumatoid arthritis, shows Vamorolone could be a promising alternative treatment for patients living with the disease.
> If Vamorolone is effective in patients with rheumatoid arthritis, it would allow us to better control disease activity, whilst preserving muscle and bone to reduce the risks of fractures and falls.
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> Dr Rowan Hardy, Associate Professor in Steroid Metabolism and Signalling, University of Birmingham
Dr Rowan Hardy, lead author of the study, has now secured further funding with the Foundation to Eradicate Duchenne that will allow the research team to better understand the processes whereby Vamorolone is able to protect muscle and bone in patients with inflammatory disease.
Through their involvement with the Birmingham Rheumatology group under Professor Adam Croft, and the NIHR BRC Inflammatory Arthritis Theme, the team will now work with clinicians to examine the possibility for new clinical trials to examine Vamorolone in rheumatoid arthritis patients.
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