Arthritis and rheumatism
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Arthritis and rheumatism · Aug 2000
Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study Clinical TrialRandomized, placebo-controlled, crossover trial of low-dose oral methotrexate in children with extended oligoarticular or systemic arthritis.
Juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) can persist through adolescence and adulthood, resulting in significant disability. The use of low-dose oral methotrexate (MTX) for persistent polyarthritis has been shown to be effective by the USA/USSR collaborative study group. However, 2 of the most disabling subgroups of JIA, systemic and extended oligoarthritis, were underrepresented in that study. The present study was therefore conducted to investigate the efficacy of MTX in these 2 subgroups. ⋯ MTX 15-20 mg/m2 given orally once a week was found to be an effective treatment for both extended oligoarticular and systemic JIA in this shortterm trial. Long-term efficacy needs to be addressed in future studies.