| Summary: | Targeted immune modulators, commonly referred to as biological response modifiers or simply biologics, are a relatively new category of medications used in the treatment of certain types of immunologic and inflammatory diseases, including rheumatoid arthritis, juvenile idiopathic arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis, psoriatic arthritis, plaque psoriasis, Crohn's disease, and ulcerative colitis. The US Food and Drug Administration approved the first of the biologics (infliximab) in 1998 and approved 9 additional agents since that time for treating various rheumatic conditions and plaque psoriasis: etanercept (1998), anakinra (2001), adalimumab (2002), alefacept (2003), efalizumab (2003), abatacept (2005), rituximab (2006), natalizumab (2008), and certolizumab pegol (2008). In this report, we review the comparative effectiveness, safety, and tolerability of targeted immune modulators
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