Treating reactive arthritis: insights for the clinician

THERE ARE TWO MAIN FORMS OF REACTIVE ARTHRITIS (REA): postvenereal and postdysentery. Chlamydia trachomatis (Ct) is the major causative organism of the postvenereal type; Salmonella, Shigella, Campylobacter, and Yersinia are the major triggers for the postenteric type. All of these causative organisms have been shown to traffic to the synovium in affected individuals. However, one important difference is that the chlamydial organisms have been shown to be viable, whereas, in general, the postenteric organisms are not. Although estimates vary widely, it is felt that 30-50% of all cases of ReA become chronic and the remainder resolve spontaneously within weeks to months. These important differences need to be considered when reviewing the available therapeutic outcomes data. There is a relative paucity of prospective clinical trial data assessing various treatment strategies. A large breadth of clinical experience demonstrates that nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and corticosteroids are efficacious, but there have only been two rather small trials assessing NSAIDs and none with corticosteroids. Disease modifying drugs are sometimes utilized in more severe or chronic cases, but only sulfasalazine (SSZ) has been studied. Anti-tumor necrosis factor (TNF) therapy has proved remarkably efficacious with other types of spondyloarthritides, but there is very little data to support their use in ReA; theoretical concerns also exist with this drug class in ReA, specifically. Finally, antibiotics have been studied in several trials. A thorough analysis of these trials reveals equivocal results with a possible particular benefit in postchlamydial ReA. These data are reviewed with an emphasis on postchlamydial and postenteric ReA.