PARIS - Three new drugs for rheumatoid arthritis signal the start of a "new era" of treatment for this sometimes-crippling disease of the joints, say Austrian researchers in a paper published online on Wednesday by The Lancet.
Josef Smolen, a professor of rheumatology at the Medical University of Vienna, investigated trial data on rituximab and abatacept, which have already been authorised for use against rheumatoid arthritis, and tocilizumab, which is in the final phase of tests.
The drugs, when used either alone or in combination with existing treatments, slowed the progression of the disease and also reduced joint pain, swelling and stiffness by around half for up to 40 percent of patients.
Rheumatoid arthritis affects between 0.5 and one percent of people, according to figures for the industrialised world.
It happens when the immune system attacks the joints, causing inflammation and damage to the cartilage and bone.
The three drugs aim to destroy or disrupt different cells that unleash this cannabilistic attack.
"The emerging agents show that a new era has started in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis," according to the paper.
It notes, though, that some patients had varying side effects, including headache, skin eruption and fever, while others failed to respond to the novel treatments, highlighting the need for further efforts against this disease.
06/13/2007 15:22 GMT