Long-term treatment with low dose glucocorticoids in Rheumatoid Arthritis: New tricks of an old drug

Abstract

Glucocorticoids (GC) have been used for more than 70 years in the management of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The immediate improvement of the clinical picture is one of their main advantages. However, RA is a chronic disease and unfortunately, long-term GC administration is associated with several serious adverse events. This is the major reason why GC therapy should be administered for the shortest possible period of time, with tapering as far as it is feasible. Although this is accepted as a "dogma", there is recently growing evidence suggesting that low doses, even in the long-term, might not be as dangerous as previously believed. On the contrary, GC may be beneficial for RA patients in several ways, considering their protective role in radiographic progression or lymphoma development.

Efek Obat Imunosupresan Pada Pasien Autoimun dengan COVID-19 (A Scoping Review of The Clinical Evidence)

“…Dosis rata-rata prednison > 30 mg/hari selama bulan pertama dan > 7,5 mg selama tahun pertama merupakan faktor independen yang berhubungan dengan risiko infeksi dalam tahun pertama dan kedua [37,38]. Oleh karena itu, dosis penjagaan prednison tidak lebih dari 5 mg/hari merupakan dosis yang dapat direkomendasikan untuk menurunkan risiko infeksi pada pasien SLE.…”

Mediterranean Journal of Rheumatology March 2018 Highlights

“…In the editorial of this issue, Dr Nikas discusses the place of corticosteroids in the modern treatment era of rheumatic diseases, especially in rheumatoid arthritis. 1 The long-term use of low-dose prednisone in various autoimmune disorders has been revisited, and Dr Nikas critically presents the pros and cons of different treatment approaches. The role of the Mediterranean diet in the context of different -rheumatic or not -disease subsets has become an extremely popular field over the last years.…”