Prednisone for rheumatoid arthritis : the detriment of the doubt

Physicians pride themselves on practicing evidence-based medicine. However, these principles appear not to apply in the case of glucocorticoid therapy for rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Despite a sizable body of evidence, glucocorticoids are underutilised in the treatment of RA. Hench's 1950 acceptance speech for the Nobel Prize (which he shared with Kendall and Reichstein for the discovery of glucocorticoids) illustrated his awareness of the benefits and risks of these agents. Although glucocorticoids have proved beneficial in randomized trials from 1955 onwards, only a perception of harm has endured. The recently published CAMERA-2 trial data could be the final piece of evidence added to the substantial body of literature proving that prednisone 10 mg/d given for 2 years in early RA, in addition to high-dose methotrexate, is better than methotrexate alone in inducing remission and preventing joint damage, and is accompanied by fewer side effects. Existing treatment guidelines need to be urgently updated to reflect these findings.

Medienart:

E-Artikel

Erscheinungsjahr:

2012

Erschienen:

2012

Enthalten in:

Zur Gesamtaufnahme - volume:155

Enthalten in:

Nederlands tijdschrift voor geneeskunde - 155(2012), 32 vom: 07., Seite A5069

Sprache:

Niederländisch

Weiterer Titel:

Prednison bij reumatoïde artritis: het nadeel van de twijfel

Beteiligte Personen:

Boers, Maarten [VerfasserIn]

Themen:

Antirheumatic Agents
English Abstract
Glucocorticoids
Journal Article
Prednisone
VB0R961HZT

Anmerkungen:

Date Completed 12.10.2012

Date Revised 21.11.2013

published: Print

Citation Status MEDLINE

Förderinstitution / Projekttitel:

PPN (Katalog-ID):

NLM220041970