Treatments given during the five years in patients primarily randomised to be treated with single or combined DMARDs during the first year
| Single therapy | Combination therapy | p Value | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total duration of DMARDs during the 5 years (years), mean (SD) | 4.5 (1.1) | 4.4 (1.3) | 0.5 |
| Number of different DMARDs given during the 5 years of follow up (median) | 2 | 2 | 0.4 |
| Total duration of primary DMARD given (months), mean (SD) | 28.9 (20.4) | 31.9 (21.2) | 0.4 |
| Patients treated with corticosteroids between years 2 and 5 (%) | 40.9 | 38.2 | 0.8 |
| Duration of corticosteroids in treated patients (days), mean (SD) | 249 (798) | 170 (305) | 0.6 |
| Cumulative dose of corticosteroids in treated patients (g), mean (SD) | 1.4 (2.3) | 1.4 (2.4) | 0.9 |