[Local radiotherapy in combined treatment of rheumatoid arthritis].
OBJECTIVE
To study efficiency in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) of local radiotherapy methods: radionuclide synovectomy (RS), x-ray therapy (XRT) and local gamma-therapy (LGT) proposed by the authors.


METHODS
175 patients with RA received local radiotherapy on the knee joints. The patients were divided into three groups comparable by age, sex and disease characteristics receiving RS, XRT and LGT. The patients were for the most part women over 45 years with RA (duration 5 years and longer), polyarthritis, the disease x-ray stage II, moderate activity.


RESULTS
RS was most effective of the above methods, especially in long-term period. It produces antiinflammatory and immunosuppressive action. The new method, LGT, was effective in more than half the patients. It is antiinflammatory and immunosuppressive. XRT was the less effective of the three methods as it has only nonspecific antiinflammatory action.


CONCLUSIONS
Local radiotherapy enhances efficacy of RA treatment. RS and LGT produce immunosuppressive and antiinflammatory actions while XRT has only antiinflammatory action.
Marusenko
I M
IM
Ignat'ev
V K
VK
Zdorov
A E
AE
D000894:Anti-Inflammatory Agents, Non-Steroidal / Q000627:therapeutic use; D001172:Arthritis, Rheumatoid / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000473:pathology / Q000532:radiotherapy*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D005720:Gamma Rays; D006801:Humans; D007719:Knee Joint; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011879:Radiotherapy Dosage; D013583:Synovial Membrane / Q000473:pathology / Q000528:radiation effects*; D013997:Time Factors
D000894:Anti-Inflammatory Agents, Non-Steroidal
Lokal'naia luchevaia terapiia v kompleksnom lechenii revmatoidnogo artrita.