Via practica 4/2012

Current treatment of rheumatoid arthritis

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a frequent, severe, inflammatory disease of joints which affects all age groups, with highest occurrence in young people and premenopausal women. The disease is of multifactorial origin, including certain genetic predisposition, and it is characterized by chronic inflammation initiated and maintained via autoimmune mechanisms. The course of RA varies. Acute exacerbations and remissions take turns. Overall, the disease course is progressive and it often leads to disability. The disease also shortens life by as much as ten years. Rheumatoid arthritis is a heterogeneous disease, with varying activity and progression of structural change development. The perceptions of subjective difficulties in patients usually differ, just as the impact on their disability and quality of life. The treatment objective is a remission, but there has to be early and aggressive therapy introduced to achieve it. Besides traditional DMARDs, there are better options available nowadays, mainly biological therapy. The disease activity assessment has become more precise. In RA, continual monitoring and safety of treatment shall be considered.

Keywords: rheumatoid arthritis, etiopathogenesis, pathological anatomy, clinical picture, classification criteria, laboratory findings for rheumatoid arthritis, treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, basal treatment (traditional DMARDs, biological therapy), monitoring and safety of treatment in RA.