With the recent approval of tocilizumab as the first biologic for the treatment of systemic juvenile idiopathic arthritis (sJIA), an important unmet medical need for this historically challenging disease has now been met. The purpose of this review article is to revisit the established therapeutic options for sJIA, to summarize the history of the clinical trials with tocilizumab, and to discuss its role in the treatment of sJIA.
Keywords: anti-interleukin-6; systemic juvenile idiopathic arthritis; tocilizumab.