Effect Of Antirheumatic Therapy Research Articles

COVID-19 in Patients with Psoriatic Arthritis

The COVID-19 pandemic has a negative impact on all aspects of human life and can lead to the exacerbation of chronic diseases. At the same time, it is known that a higher risk of infection and a more severe course of coronavirus infection is found in the elderly, as well as in people with serious comorbidities. Psoriatic arthritis (PsA) is a type of inflammatory arthritis that is often diagnosed in patients with psoriasis. Specific treatment of patients with chronic inflammatory joint disease include nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, glucocorticosteroids, disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs, new biological agents, including monoclonal antibodies to IL-6, IL-1, TNF-a, target disease modifying drugs. Medications used for PsA treatment can potentially have both negative and positive effects on the course of COVID-19. The objective: to analyze the features of COVID-19 in patients with PsA and to study the comorbid pathology after coronavirus infection. Materials and methods. The study involved 174 people with a verified diagnosis of PsA. Patients were divided into two groups. Group I included 112 (64.4%) persons who had COVID-19, and group II - 62 (35.6%) who had not had coronavirus infection at the time of first examination. Patients in group I significantly differed from group II in age (p <0.001) and duration of PsA (p <0.001), showed a significantly higher degree of psoriatic skin lesions and activity of the underlying disease (p = 0.001) compared to patients from group II. The participants of the study underwent examination characterize the course of the psoriatic disease and skin lesions and risk of cardiovascular disease. Results. To date, there are no clear scientific data that reveal the specific features of COVID-19 infection and the effect of antirheumatic therapy on the development of dangerous complications associated with coronavirus infection in patients with PsA. The analysis of comorbid pathology has found cardiovascular pathology in 67 (59.8%) of patients, including arterial hypertension – in 58 (51.8%) people, metabolic syndrome – in 34 (30.4%), diseases of the digestive system – in 32 (28.6%) and respiratory system – in 24 (21.4%) of persons. Conclusions. Patients with higher activity and duration of the PsA were significantly more likely to get COVID-19 and demonstrated higher total cardiovascular risk for the next 10 years. Further research is needed to study the impact of specific basic rheumatological drugs on the outcomes of COVID-19 and to analyze the broader effects of the pandemic on the course of psoriatic arthritis.

The effect of drug treatment on functional outcomes of hip and knee joint replacement in patients with rheumatoid arthritis

Aim – to determine the effect of drug antirheumatic therapy on the functional outcomes of hip and knee arthroplasty in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Materials and methods. The results of 160 operations of total hip arthroplasty and 148 operations of total arthroplasty of knee joints in patients with rheumatoid joint lesions were analyzed using mathematical methods of statistical processing. Patients were divided into 4 groups: Group I – without anti-inflammatory therapy, Group II – received hormone therapy, Group III – basic therapy and Group IV – received both the basic and hormonal therapy at the time of surgery. Results. The obtained results indicated a moderate correlation between therapy and the joint range of motion of the lower extremities using basic therapy and combined nonsteroidal, hormonal and basic therapy, and the range of motion differed significantly in combination therapy from hormonal alone. The highest scores of the J. Joseph, E. E. Kaufman rating scale were observed in combination therapy with NSAIDs, hormonal and basic therapy; the lower scores – in hormonal and NSAIDs combination; and the lowest ones – in the combination of basic therapy with NSAIDs. The greatest increase in the knee joint range of motion was observed in the patients who received hormonal drugs or basic therapy compared to the patients who did not take any one or received both of these medicines in combination. Almost the same effect of antirheumatic therapy on the results of both hip and knee arthroplasty was determined with an upward trend in percentage of good and excellent results in males regardless of the lesion location and the most optimal ratio between satisfactory-unsatisfactory and good-excellent results in the patients under 40 years of age. Conclusions. The studies conducted allow to consider the combined drug therapy as a factor of weak and moderate influence on the functional outcomes of hip and knee arthroplasty in the late stages of rheumatoid arthritis and suggest that antirheumatic drug therapy should not be discontinued in the perioperative period.

COVID-19 vaccination and antirheumatic therapy.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination will be the largest vaccination programme in the history of the NHS. Patients on immunosuppressive therapy will be among the earliest to be vaccinated. Some evidence indicates immunosuppressive therapy inhibits humoral response to the influenza, pneumococcal and hepatitis B vaccines. The degree to which this will translate to impaired COVID-19 vaccine responses is unclear. Other evidence suggests withholding MTX for 2 weeks post-vaccination may improve responses. Rituximab has been shown to impair humoral responses for 6 months or longer post-administration. Decisions on withholding or interrupting immunosuppressive therapy around COVID-19 vaccination will need to be made prior to the availability of data on specific COVID-19 vaccine response in these patients. With this in mind, this article outlines the existing data on the effect of antirheumatic therapy on vaccine responses in patients with inflammatory arthritis and formulates a possible pragmatic management strategy for COVID-19 vaccination.

Chronic Heart Failure in Rheumatoid Arthritis Patients (Part III): Effects of Antirheumatic Drugs

Chronic autoimmune inflammation is one of the leading risk factors for the development of chronic heart failure (CHF) in rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The purpose of the review is to analyze the results of investigations on the effects of conventional synthetic disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (csDMARDs), biological disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (bDMARDs), and targeted csDMARDs on cardiac function and the risk of developing CHF in patients with RA. Methotrexate may reduce the CHF risk and have a positive effect on the course of this condition in patients with RA. Despite the data on the presence of leflunomide effects that impede myocardial remodeling, there is no evidence of the role of the drug in the prevention of CHF in RA patients. Hydroxychloroquine may contribute to the prevention of CHF, but the risk of developing severe cardiotoxicity should be considered when taking the drug for a long time. Most studies have not revealed the negative effect of tumor necrosis factor inhibitors on the prevalence and incidence of new cases of CHF in RA patients, and an improvement in the structure and function of the heart during therapy has been shown. Inhibitors of interleukin (IL) -1, inhibitors of IL-6, inhibitors of T-cell co-stimulation, anti-B-cell therapy, targeted csDMARDs do not increase the risk of CHF and may have cardioprotective effects, including slowing the progression of left ventricle myocardial dysfunction. Due to the high risk of CHF and CHF-associated mortality in RA patients, early diagnosis of cardiac dysfunction, development of a prevention and treatment strategies are needed, including high-quality prospective studies to assess the effect of anti-rheumatic therapy on myocardial function, risk of developing and decompensation of CHF in RA patients. It is possible that some drugs may possess protective effects on cardiomyocytes so they could become the first-line drugs in patients with CHF or the risk of its development.

Effects of antirheumatic therapy on serum lipid levels in patients with rheumatoid arthritis: a prospective study

BackgroundPatients with newly diagnosed rheumatoid arthritis have adverse serum lipid profiles. We sought to determine the effects of treating rheumatoid arthritis with antirheumatic drugs on these abnormal lipid levels. Subjects and methodsWe studied 42 patients with newly diagnosed rheumatoid arthritis who had not been treated with corticosteroids or disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs. We measured serum lipid profiles at baseline and 1 year later, and determined whether there were differences in the changes in lipid levels between patients who met the American College of Rheumatology criteria for a 20% improvement in rheumatoid arthritis and those who did not. ResultsOf the 42 patients, 27 (64%) met the criteria for a 20% improvement in rheumatoid arthritis during the 12-month study. In these patients, mean high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol levels increased by 21% (P <0.001), apolipoprotein A-I levels increased by 23% (P <0.001), and the ratio of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol to HDL cholesterol level decreased by 13% (P = 0.10). There were significant between-group differences (responders–nonresponders) in the mean 12-month changes in HDL cholesterol levels (8.0 mg/dL; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 3 to 13 mg/dL; P = 0.002), apolipoprotein A-I levels (21 mg/dL; 95% CI: 8 to 33 mg/dL; P = 0.003), and the LDL cholesterol to HDL cholesterol ratio (–0.6; 95% CI: –0.1 to –1.0; P = 0.03), but not in LDL cholesterol, apolipoprotein B-100, or lipoprotein(a) levels. ConclusionActive rheumatoid arthritis is associated with an adverse lipid profile that improves substantially following effective treatment of rheumatoid arthritis. This improvement may reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease.

The effects of antirheumatic therapy on pregnancy and fertility

The effects of antirheumatic therapy on pregnancy and fertility