Low-Dose Prednisone Inclusion in a Methotrexate-Based, Tight Control Strategy for Early Rheumatoid Arthritis
Authors: Johannes W.G. Jacobs, Marije F. Bakker, Johannes W.J. Bijlsma
Journal: Annals of Internal Medicine (2012)

Letters21 August 2012Low-Dose Prednisone Inclusion in a Methotrexate-Based, Tight Control Strategy for Early Rheumatoid ArthritisJohannes W.G. Jacobs, PhD, MD, Marije F. Bakker, PhD, and Johannes W.J. Bijlsma, PhD, MDJohannes W.G. Jacobs, PhD, MDFrom University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands.Search for more papers by this author, Marije F. Bakker, PhDFrom University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands.Search for more papers by this author, and Johannes W.J. Bijlsma, PhD, MDFrom University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands.Search for more papers by this authorAuthor, Article, and Disclosure Informationhttps://doi.org/10.7326/0003-4819-157-4-201208210-00020 SectionsAboutFull TextPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail IN RESPONSE:We appreciate the interest in our article on the CAMERA-II trial. On the basis of the results of our previous CAMERA study (1), we anticipated good disease control, which leaves less room for a specific glucocorticoid treatment effect. Therefore, we chose a daily dose of prednisone that can indeed be described as low to medium. Lower doses that have been proven effective in observational studies or studies that are not tight controlled are not necessarily also effective in a tight control study. To date, the CAMERA-II trial is the only tight control study with systematic evaluation of the ...References1. Verstappen SM, Jacobs JW, van der Veen MJ, Heurkens AH, Schenk Y, ter Borg EJ, et al; Utrecht Rheumatoid Arthritis Cohort study group. Intensive treatment with methotrexate in early rheumatoid arthritis: aiming for remission. Computer Assisted Management in Early Rheumatoid Arthritis (CAMERA, an open-label strategy trial). Ann Rheum Dis. 2007;66:1443-9. [PMID: 17519278] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar2. Au K, Reed G, Curtis JR, Kremer JM, Greenberg JD, Strand V, et al; CORRONA Investigators. High disease activity is associated with an increased risk of infection in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Ann Rheum Dis. 2011;70:785-91. [PMID: 21288960] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar3. Wasko MC, Kay J, Hsia EC, Rahman MU. Diabetes mellitus and insulin resistance in patients with rheumatoid arthritis: risk reduction in a chronic inflammatory disease. Arthritis Care Res (Hoboken). 2011;63:512-21. [PMID: 21452264] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar4. Klarenbeek NB, van der Kooij SM, Huizinga TJ, Goekoop-Ruiterman YP, Hulsmans HM, van Krugten MV, et al. Blood pressure changes in patients with recent-onset rheumatoid arthritis treated with four different treatment strategies: a post hoc analysis from the BeSt trial. Ann Rheum Dis. 2010;69:1342-5. [PMID: 20472597] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar5. Peters MJ, Vis M, van Halm VP, Wolbink GJ, Voskuyl AE, Lems WF, et al. Changes in lipid profile during infliximab and corticosteroid treatment in rheumatoid arthritis. Ann Rheum Dis. 2007;66:958-61. [PMID: 17314120] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar6. Evans MR, Escalante A, Battafarano DF, Freeman GL, O'Leary DH, del Rincón I. Carotid atherosclerosis predicts incident acute coronary syndromes in rheumatoid arthritis. Arthritis Rheum. 2011;63:1211-20. [PMID: 21305526] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar Author, Article, and Disclosure InformationAffiliations: From University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands.Disclosures: Disclosures can be viewed at www.acponline.org/authors/icmje/ConflictOfInterestForms.do?msNum=M11-0297. PreviousarticleNextarticle Advertisement FiguresReferencesRelatedDetailsSee AlsoLow-Dose Prednisone Inclusion in a Methotrexate-Based, Tight Control Strategy for Early Rheumatoid Arthritis Marije F. Bakker , Johannes W.G. Jacobs , Paco M.J. Welsing , Suzanne M.M. Verstappen , Janneke Tekstra , Evelien Ton , Monique A.W. Geurts , Jacobine H. van der Werf , Grietje A. van Albada-Kuipers , Zalima N. Jahangier-de Veen , Maaike J. van der Veen , Catharina M. Verhoef , Floris P.J.G. Lafeber , Johannes W.J. Bijlsma , and Low-Dose Prednisone Inclusion in a Methotrexate-Based, Tight Control Strategy for Early Rheumatoid Arthritis Theodore Pincus , Isabel Castrejon , and Yusuf Yazici Low-Dose Prednisone Inclusion in a Methotrexate-Based, Tight Control Strategy for Early Rheumatoid Arthritis Athanase D. Protogerou , Evangelia Zampeli , and Petros P. Sfikakis Metrics 21 August 2012Volume 157, Issue 4Page: 300KeywordsConflicts of interestDisclosureDrug therapyEndotheliumGlucocorticoid therapyGlucose metabolismInfectious diseasesLipidsObservational studiesRheumatoid arthritis ePublished: 21 August 2012 Issue Published: 21 August 2012 CopyrightCopyright © 2012 by American College of Physicians. All Rights Reserved.PDF DownloadLoading ...