In a nutshell This study examined whether rheumatoid arthritis patients with persistent moderate disease activity have a worse outcome than patients that achieve remission. Some background The severity of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) varies between patients. Treatments are given early after diagnosis in order to stop or reduce joint damage. Some...
Read More
In a nutshell This study examined the safety and effectiveness of switching from intravenous tocilizumab (Actemra) to subcutaneous. Some background Tocilizumab is a drug which prevents the immune system from attacking the joints in rheumatoid arthritis patients. It is given intravenously (injected into a vein by a healthcare...
Read More
In a nutshell This study examined whether response to tocilizumab (Actemra) is influenced by body mass index (a measure of the amount of muscle, fat and bone) in rheumatoid arthritis patients. Some background Rheumatoid arthritis is an inflammatory disease affecting the joints, the connections between bones. It is an autoimmune...
Read More
In a nutshell This study investigated whether doctors could predict the long term effectiveness of infliximab (Remicade) treatment for rheumatoid arthritis, based on early results at 3 months. Some background Rheumatoid arthritis is an autoimmune disease, caused by the immune system attacking healthy tissue. Blocking the immune system...
Read More
In a nutshell This study compared the effectiveness of two different rheumatoid arthritis drugs in patients with prior anti-TNF use. Some background Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is an autoimmune disease, caused by the immune system attacking healthy tissue. Blocking the immune system with disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs) such...
Read More
In a nutshell This study investigated whether MRP8/14 protein levels can predict rheumatoid arthritis patient response to biologic drug treatment. Some background Rheumatoid arthritis is an inflammatory disease affecting the joints, the connections between bones. The goal of drug therapy is remission: a time when the disease is not active and...
Read More
Rheumatoid Arthritis or Rheumatoid Disease Rheumatoid Arthritis is an autoimmune disease. People usually start out having joint pain that is “symmetrical” meaning that if the joint in the ring finger of the right hand hurts, the same joint in the left hand ring finger is painful. Redness, warmth and swelling can occur in the tender joint. Fever,...
Read More
In a nutshell This study examined the effects of withdrawing biologic drugs upon remission in established long-term RA patients. Some background Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is an inflammatory disease affecting the joints, the connections between bones. The main focus of RA treatment is to reduce pain and inflammation, and to limit the amount of...
Read MoreIn a nutshell The authors aimed to evaluate how sustained remission affects joint inflammation in rheumatoid arthritis. Some background Following successful treatment, RA patients often enter a state called “clinical remission” i.e. the disease activity has decreased. Patients are said to be in clinical remission if they have...
Read More
In a nutshell This article reviews how etanercept (Enbrel) works and what adverse events it may cause in patients with rheumatic diseases. Some background Patients with rheumatic diseases (such as rheumatoid arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, plaque psoriasis, ankylosing spondylitis and juvenile idiopathic arthritis) have increased local or general...
Read More
In a nutshell This study evaluated whether there is a predictor of time to relapse in rheumatoid arthritis patients with swelling of the knee. Some background Rheumatoid arthritis causes painful, swollen joints. Treatment with steroids called glucocorticoids (for example Cortisone, Deltasone) can reduce these symptoms. Injecting steroids...
Read More
In a nutshell This review examined the various treatment options for patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Some background Disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs) are a group of medications used for treating patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Commonly used DMARDs include methotrexate (Rheumatrex, Trexall), sulfasalazine (Azulfidine)...
Read More
