Arthritis and rheumatism
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Arthritis and rheumatism · Aug 2013
Sphingosine 1-phosphate counteracts the effects of interleukin-1β in human chondrocytes.
The lipid mediator sphingosine 1-phosphate (S1P) is found in the synovial fluid of osteoarthritis (OA) patients. S1P protects bovine cartilage by counteracting the effects of interleukin-1β (IL-1β). This study was undertaken to examine the interaction of S1P and IL-1β in human OA chondrocytes. ⋯ In human chondrocytes, S1P reduces the induction of catabolic genes in the presence of IL-1β. Activation of the S1P2 receptor counteracts the detrimental phosphorylation of p38 MAPK by IL-1β.
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Arthritis and rheumatism · Aug 2013
Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative StudyValidation of the methotrexate-first strategy in patients with early, poor-prognosis rheumatoid arthritis: results from a two-year randomized, double-blind trial.
Methotrexate (MTX) taken as monotherapy is recommended as the initial disease-modifying antirheumatic drug for rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The purpose of this study was to examine outcomes of a blinded trial of initial MTX monotherapy with the option to step-up to combination therapy as compared to immediate combination therapy in patients with early, poor-prognosis RA. ⋯ These results in patients with early, poor prognosis RA validate the strategy of starting with MTX monotherapy. This study is the first to demonstrate in a blinded trial that initial MTX monotherapy with the option to step-up to combination therapy results in similar outcomes to immediate combination therapy. Approximately 30% of patients will not need combination therapy, and the 70% who will need it are clinically and radiographically indistinguishable from those who were randomized to receive immediate combination therapy.
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Arthritis and rheumatism · Aug 2013
Multicenter StudyMagnetic resonance imaging-based three-dimensional bone shape of the knee predicts onset of knee osteoarthritis: data from the osteoarthritis initiative.
To examine whether magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)-based 3-dimensional (3-D) bone shape predicts the onset of radiographic knee osteoarthritis (OA). ⋯ MRI-based 3-D bone shape predicted the later onset of radiographic OA. Further study is warranted to determine whether such methods can detect treatment effects in trials and provide insight into the pathophysiology of OA development.