OBJECTIVES Viruses may contribute to RA. This prompted us to monitor viral load and response to anti-CD20 therapy in RA patients. METHODS Blood and bone marrow from 35 RA patients were analysed for CMV, EBV, HSV-1, HSV-2, parvovirus B19 and polyomavirus using real-time PCR before and 3 months after rituximab (RTX) treatment and related to the levels of autoantibodies and B-cell depletion. Cli...

OBJECTIVES To investigate by magnetic resonance (MR) imaging the occurrence of cervical spine (CS) involvement in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients. METHODS Fifty-one consecutive unselected patients, who fulfilled the revised American College of Rheumatology criteria for RA, were investigated. All patients had a complete physical and laboratory evaluation. Radiological evaluation included ha...

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a significant cause of work disability and job loss. The resulting economic burden experienced by patients has received considerable research attention. This research assesses the effect of tumor necrosis factor (TNF) antagonists (infliximab, etanercept) on the ability of RA patients living in Japan to work and participate in society. A total of 42 patients with act...

BACKGROUND Rituximab, a monoclonal antibody that selectively targets CD20-positive B-lymphocytes, is used for the treatment of patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) with an inadequate response or tolerance to tumor necrosis factor inhibitors. The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of rituximab treatment on the serum concentrations of vitamin D, interleukin (IL) 2, IL-6, IL...

BACKGROUND RA and CVD both have inflammation as part of the underlying biology. Our objective was to explore the relationships of GlycA, a measure of glycosylated acute phase proteins, with inflammation and cardiometabolic risk in RA, and explore whether these relationships were similar to those for persons without RA. METHODS Plasma GlycA was determined for 50 individuals with mild-moderate ...

Background: Patients and clinicians report pain and fatigue as key outcome measures in rheumatoid arthritis. Fatigue and pain are a major concern to patients. Aim: The objective of this study was to examine fatigue and pain in adult patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and to investigate the association between pain and fatigue with body awareness, demographic, disease-related, emotional and...

OBJECTIVE Previous studies have shown that the bioflavonoid quercetin has anti-inflammatory and anti-nociceptive effects. We investigated the effect of quercetin supplementation on inflammation, disease severity, and clinical symptoms in women with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). METHODS The present study was a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial in which 50 women with RA w...

Background Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is associated with elevated plasma level of inflammatory markers. Chronic inflammation is known to predispose to endothelial dysfunction and increased arterial stiffness, which is an important marker of subclinical atherosclerosis and increased cardiovascular risk. Objective The aim is to test for the relationship between disease activity and arterial stif...

OBJECTIVES To determine the influence of disease-related variables on hand cortical bone loss in women with early inflammatory arthritis (IA), and whether hand cortical bone mass predicts subsequent joint damage. METHOD Adults aged ≥ 16 years with recent onset of IA were recruited to the Norfolk Arthritis Register between 1990 and 1998, and followed prospectively. At baseline, patients had th...

OBJECTIVE To determine adherence to methotrexate (MTX) therapy in patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) and to identify factors that promote either adherence or non adherence. METHODS One hundred Rheumatoid Arthritis patients on MTX for at least two months were enrolled. Questionnaire was completed by direct interview. Details recorded were, demographics (age, sex, education, monthly income...