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Osteoporosis is a well known feature of rheumatoid arthritis (RA).1 Cross sectional studies have shown that patients with RA have a lower bone mineral density (BMD) than healthy controls.2 Disease activity, steroid use, and immobility are associated with loss of BMD in RA.3–7 It has been suggested that active treatment of patients with RA may prevent loss of BMD.8 The current most effective drugs in the treatment of RA are the tumour necrosis factor α blocking agents. The beneficial effects of short term treatment with infliximab on markers of bone metabolism in patients with active RA have recently been shown.9 From this we proposed the hypothesis that bone loss might be arrested in patients with RA during treatment with infliximab.
METHODS AND RESULTS
This open cohort study consisted of consecutive patients …