Biologics are effective, though costly, medications for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Biosimilars are medications that have no clinically meaningful differences when compared with their corresponding reference biologics but cost significantly less. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the European Medication Agency have approved biosimilars for adalimumab, etanercept, infliximab, and rituximab for the treatment of RA. Streamlined approval processes are expected to expedite biosimilar development while maintaining strict safety and efficacy standards. Encouragingly, many analyses have demonstrated the potential for massive healthcare savings if biosimilars are used over biologics. Challenges to biosimilar uptake, including patient and provider hesitancy, can likely be overcome with the education of all stakeholders within healthcare systems.

生物制剂是治疗类风湿性关节炎 (RA) 的有效药物，但价格昂贵。生物仿制药是与相应的参考生物制剂相比没有临床意义差异但成本显着降低的药物。美国食品和药物管理局和欧洲药物管理局已批准用于治疗 RA 的阿达木单抗、依那西普、英夫利昔单抗和利妥昔单抗的生物仿制药。简化的审批流程有望加快生物仿制药的开发，同时保持严格的安全性和有效性标准。令人鼓舞的是，许多分析表明，如果使用生物仿制药而不是生物制剂，则有可能节省大量医疗保健费用。生物仿制药吸收的挑战，包括患者和提供者的犹豫，