APLAR rheumatoid arthritis treatment recommendations.
OBJECTIVE
Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic inflammatory condition that affects approximately 1% of the world's population. There are a wide number of guidelines and recommendations available to support the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis; however, the evidence used for these guidelines is predominantly based on studies in Caucasian subjects and may not be relevant for rheumatoid arthritis patients in the Asia-Pacific region. Therefore, the Asia Pacific League of Associations for Rheumatology established a Steering Committee in 2013 to address this issue.


METHODS
The AGREE II instrument and the ADAPTE Collaboration framework were applied to systematically identify, appraise, synthesize, and adapt international rheumatoid arthritis guidelines for use in the Asia-Pacific region.


RESULTS
Forty rheumatoid arthritis treatment recommendations, based on evidence and expert opinion, were drafted and are presented in this report.


CONCLUSIONS
The Asia Pacific of Associations for Rheumatology rheumatoid arthritis treatment recommendations are intended to serve as a reference for best practice management of rheumatoid arthritis in Asia-Pacific, focusing on local issues to ensure the delivery of basic care for these patients, and to improve their outcomes. In addition, the document will serve as a reference for national rheumatology associations in Asia-Pacific for developing guidelines in their respective countries.
Division of Rheumatology and Clinical Immunology, Queen Mary Hospital, University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong.
Chak Sing
CS
Lau
Department of Rheumatology, Allergy and Immunology, Tan Tock Seng Hospital, Singapore City, Singapore.
Faith
F
Chia
Department of Medicine, University of Otago Wellington, Wellington South, New Zealand.
Andrew
A
Harrison
Section of Allergy, Immunology and Rheumatology, and Section of Clinical Skills Training, Taichung Veterans General Hospital, Taichung, Taiwan.
Tsu-Yi
TY
Hsieh
Narayana Hospital, Jaipur, India.
Rahul
R
Jain
Division of Rheumatology, Department of Internal Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, St. Mary's Hospital, Seoul, South Korea.
Seung Min
SM
Jung
Immuno-Rheumatology Center, St Luke's International Hospital, Tokyo, Japan.
Mitsumasa
M
Kishimoto
Department of Rheumatology, Fortis Flt. Lt Rajan Dhall Hospital, New Delhi, India.
Ashok
A
Kumar
Department of Rheumatology, Allergy and Immunology, Tan Tock Seng Hospital, Singapore City, Singapore.
Khai Pang
KP
Leong
Department of Rheumatology, Peking University People's Hospital, Beijing, China.
Zhanguo
Z
Li
St. Luke's Medical Center, Quezon City, Philippines.
Juan Javier
JJ
Lichauco
Division of Rheumatology, Department of Internal Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai, Thailand.
Worawit
W
Louthrenoo
Department of Rheumatology, Allergy and Immunology, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital and Chang Gung University, Tao-Yuan, Taiwan.
Shue-Fen
SF
Luo
Department of Medicine, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia.
Peter
P
Nash
Department of Rheumatology and Immunology, Singapore General Hospital, Singapore City, Singapore.
Chin Teck
CT
Ng
Division of Rheumatology, Department of Internal Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, St. Mary's Hospital, Seoul, South Korea.
Sung-Hwan
SH
Park
Rheumatology Division, Department of Internal Medicine, Brawijaya University, Saiful Anwar General Hospital, Malang, Indonesia.
Bagus Putu Putra
BP
Suryana
Allergy, Immunology and Rheumatology Division, Internal Medicine Department, Faculty of Medicine, Ramathibodi Hospital, Mahidol University, Bangkok, Thailand.
Parawee
P
Suwannalai
Division of Rheumatology, Department of Internal Medicine, University of Indonesia, Jakarta, Indonesia.
Linda Kurniaty
LK
Wijaya
Department of Allergy and Rheumatology, Graduate School of Medicine, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan.
Kazuhiko
K
Yamamoto
Department of Rheumatology, Peking University People's Hospital, Beijing, China.
Yue
Y
Yang
Subang Jaya Medical Centre, Selangor, Malaysia.
Swan Sim
SS
Yeap
D001172:Arthritis, Rheumatoid / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000628:therapy*; D032921:Consensus; D019317:Evidence-Based Medicine / Q000592:standards; D006801:Humans; D012219:Rheumatology / Q000592:standards*
drug treatment; rheumatoid arthritis