OBJECTIVE The overall aim of this study was to estimate the total costs for patients with RA, AS and psoriatic arthritis (PsA) treated with DMARDs. Specific aims were to compare the costs across diagnoses and over time. METHODS The main data source was the Norwegian DMARD register (NOR-DMARD) that captures outcomes and resource use among patients starting therapy with synthetic and biologic D...

We investigated the frequency of remission according to the disease activity score (DAS28) definition, modified American Rheumatology Association (ARA) criteria, and the frequency of an achievement of a functional status above defined thresholds ('functional remission', 'physical independence') in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients treated with either biologics or conventional DMARDs. We used t...

A randomised controlled trial (RCT) of high-dose v. low-dose fish oil in recent-onset rheumatoid arthritis (RA) demonstrated that the group allocated to high-dose fish oil had increased remission and decreased failure of disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drug (DMARD) therapy. This study examines the relationships between plasma phospholipid levels of the n-3 fatty acids in fish oil, EPA and DHA,...

OBJECTIVE The use of disease modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARD) for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is predicated on the expected value of the treatment course. Most clinical data are generalized from randomized controlled trials (RCT), which may result in estimates that are discordant with clinical experience and cannot address the effects of sequence of drugs. We computed estimates of relative D...

To study the clinical characteristics of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients attending the rheumatology unit in a private hospital. The demographic characteristics, laboratory parameters, comorbidities, articular manifestations and pattern of prescriptions were studied from the case records . A total of 75 RA patients were studied. Female preponderance was observed and the ratio was found to be ...

OBJECTIVES When rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients have achieved sustained good clinical responses can their disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs) be reduced or discontinued? This review addresses this question by summarising the clinical evidence about DMARD withdrawal. It includes an assessment of predictive factors for sustained DMARD-free remissions. METHODS We evaluated the evi...

OBJECTIVES To evaluate the efficacy and safety of subcutaneous golimumab as add-on therapy in patients with active rheumatoid arthritis (RA) despite disease-modifying antirheumatic drug (DMARD) treatment. To evaluate an intravenous plus subcutaneous (IV+SC) golimumab strategy in patients who had not attained remission. METHODS GO-MORE was an open-label, multinational, prospective study in pat...

OBJECTIVE To compare the efficacy of therapy with a combination of disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs) versus therapy with a single DMARD in the prevention of work disability in patients with early rheumatoid arthritis (RA). METHODS In the Finnish Rheumatoid Arthritis Combination Therapy trial, 195 patients with recent-onset RA were randomly assigned to receive either combination t...

Background: Pneumococcal vaccination is recommended to patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and primary Sjögren’s syndrome (pSS). However, little is known whether the diseases influence pneumococcal vaccine response. This study aimed to investigate antibody response and functionality of antibodies following immunization with 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV13) in RA patients or ...