Article Text
Abstract
Objective: To evaluate the available evidence on the efficacy and feasibility of the new concept of tight control in randomised trials in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Tight control is a treatment strategy tailored to the individual patient with RA, which aims to achieve a predefined level of low disease activity or remission within a certain period of time.
Methods: The literature database PubMed was searched and yielded four trials: the FIN-RACo trial, the TICORA study, the BeSt study and the CAMERA study.
Results: Tight control resulted in greater improvement and a higher percentage of patients meeting the preset aim of low disease activity or remission when compared to the control intervention. In the FIN-RACo trial, aimed at DAS28<2.6, 51% of patients in the tight control group achieved remission versus 16% in the contrast group (p<0.001). In the TICORA study, 65% of patients in the tight control group versus 16% of the contrast group achieved remission, based on DAS<1.6 (p<0.0001). In the CAMERA study, 50% of patients in the tight control group using a computer decision model achieved remission, versus 37% in the contrast group (p = 0.029). The BeSt study consisted of only tight control groups aimed at a DAS<1.6; remission was achieved in 38–46% of patients. This is higher than the range of remission in earlier trials of 13–36%.
Conclusion: Tight control aiming for low disease activity or even better still, remission, seems a promising option in treating patients with RA in clinical trials and probably also in daily practice.
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Footnotes
Competing interests: None declared.
- Abbreviations:
- ACR
- American College of Rheumatology
- CRP
- C-reactive protein
- DMARDs
- disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs
- ESR
- erythrocyte sedimentation rate
- NSAIDs
- non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs
- RA
- rheumatoid arthritis
- SJC
- swollen joint score
- TJC
- tender joint score
- VAS
- Visual Analogue Scale
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