Study: Low-Doses of Prednisone Beneficial for Rheumatoid Arthritis

Low-doses of prednisone are beneficial and slow joint damage in patients with rheumatoid arthritis, according to researchers at the University Medical Center Utrecht in The Netherlands.

Disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs) reduce the symptoms and the risk of permanent joint damage in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Prednisone, a glucocorticoid drug, reduces inflammation and improves symptoms.

Recent studies have shown that prednisone may also prevent joint damage in patients who are taking DMARDs.

Researchers developed a study to see if prednisone prevented joint damage in patients with early rheumatoid arthritis but had little joint damage and were not taking DMARDs.

Eighty-one patients (average age 60 years) who had rheumatoid arthritis for under one year and had never been treated with DMARDs were randomly assigned to receive prednisone or a placebo for two years. Researchers assessed the patients' joint symptoms and x-rayed the joints every six months.

After 6 months, the patients who took prednisone had fewer symptoms of joint stiffness, swelling and tenderness and had better grip strength than the patients taking a placebo, the researchers reported in the Annals of Internal Medicine.

These patients also took fewer additional therapies such as nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, than the patients taking a placebo. After one and two years, x-rays showed less joint damage in the patients taking prednisone, although prednisone was found to increase the risk for bone fractures.

Other sources: Annals of Internal Medicine