Anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory therapies in spondyloarthropathies

Although the spondyloarthropathies constitute amongst the commonest chronic inflammatory joint disorders, there have been few therapeutic advances since the introduction of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory agents. A number of disease-modifying therapies originally developed for rheumatoid arthritis have also been examined in this class of arthritides, although placebo-controlled studies are lacking. Despite the low interest from industry, there is the promise that emerging therapies, particularly bisphosphonates and tumor necrosis factor alpha antagonists may be efficacious. Significant impediments to the development of additional therapeutic agents include a limited understanding of immunopathological events operative in early disease, disease heterogeneity, the inability to detect structural damage with adequate sensitivity, and the high cost of treatment. However, the recent development of internationally standardized and validated clinical outcome assessment tools as well as sophisticated magnetic resonance imaging are rekindling interest in these disorders.