title: Treatment of rheumatoid arthritis: a global perspective on the use of antirheumatic drugs.
abstract: Modern therapy for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is based on knowledge of the severity of the natural history of the disease. RA patients are approached with early and aggressive treatment strategies, methotrexate as an anchor drug, biological targeted therapies in those with inadequate response to methotrexate, and "tight control," aiming for remission and low disease activity according to quantitative monitoring. This chapter presents a rationale for current treatment strategies for RA with antirheumatic drugs, a review of published reports concerning treatments in clinical cohorts outside of clinical trials, and current treatments at 61 sites in 21 countries in the QUEST-RA database.
authors.affiliation: Arkisto/Tutkijat, Jyväskylä Central Hospital, Jyvaskyla, Finland. tuulikki.sokka@ksshp.fi
authors.forename: Tuulikki
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Sokka
authors.forename: Minja
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Envalds
authors.forename: Theodore
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Pincus
mesh_terms: D018501:Antirheumatic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D001172:Arthritis, Rheumatoid / Q000188:drug therapy*; D014943:Global Health; D006801:Humans
chemical_list: D018501:Antirheumatic Agents