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Tight disease control in early RA

Deepali Sen1, Richard Brasington

  • 1Division of Rheumatology, Department of Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine, 660 South Euclid Avenue, St Louis, MO 63110, USA. dsen@dom.wustl.edu

Rheumatic Diseases Clinics of North America
|July 24, 2012
PubMed

Insights

Aggressive treatment for early rheumatoid arthritis (RA) using treat-to-target strategies improves long-term outcomes. This review examines studies on early RA management, including oral and biologic therapies, focusing on achieving remission.

Area of Science:

  • Rheumatology
  • Clinical Medicine
  • Pharmacology

Background:

  • Growing evidence supports aggressive intervention for early rheumatoid arthritis (RA).
  • Treat-to-target strategies in RA management yield superior long-term results.
  • Both oral disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs) and biologic agents are effective for early RA.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To review studies on early rheumatoid arthritis treatment.
  • To focus on the treat-to-target approach in managing early RA.
  • To evaluate the effectiveness of different therapeutic strategies in early active RA.

Main Methods:

  • Literature review of studies on early rheumatoid arthritis treatment.
  • Analysis of research employing treat-to-target strategies.
  • Comparison of various therapeutic interventions, including oral DMARDs and biologics.

Main Results:

  • Treat-to-target strategies demonstrate superior long-term outcomes in early RA.
  • Oral DMARDs and biologic agents show efficacy in treating early RA.
  • Ongoing research is needed to clarify optimal initial therapy for early active RA.

Conclusions:

  • Aggressive therapeutic intervention is beneficial for early rheumatoid arthritis.
  • Treat-to-target strategies are effective for achieving low disease activity or remission in RA.
  • Further research is required to determine the most effective initial treatment for early active RA.

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