RESUMO
Background: Osteoarthritis is a degenerative joint disorder of articular cartilage and is the most common type of arthritis in the elderly. There are only a few reports regarding the use of Hydroxychloroquine in the treatment of osteoarthritis
Methods: To investigate the effects of Hydroxychloroquine on the symptoms of mild to moderate knee osteoarthritis [Kellgren and Lawrence grade II and III], we performed a double-blind, placebocontrolled study in 44 patients. The patients were randomly assigned to two groups: one group received Hydroxychloroquine pills [200 mg twice daily] and the other group received placebo pills. Symptoms were assessed by the Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index [WOMAC] at baseline and at the end of weeks 4, 8, 12, 16, 20, and 24
Results: Approximately, 98% of the patients were women at an average age of 47 years. There was no significant difference in the baseline characteristics between the two groups. In the placebo group, maximum improvement occurred at the 4th week; and during the remaining time, there was no significant improvement. In the Hydroxychloroquine group, maximum improvement occurred at the 8[th] week and persisted over the entire remaining follow-up period. There were significant differences between the two groups regarding the degree of reduction in the WOMAC total score and the WOMAC subscales scores of pain, stiffness, and function at the end of weeks 4, 8, 12, 16, 20, and 24
Conclusion: Hydroxychloroquine conferred significant improvement in the symptoms of mild to moderate knee osteoarthritis in our patients and may, accordingly, be recommended for knee osteoarthritis treatment
RESUMO
Anti-cyclic citrullinated peptide [anti-CCP] antibodies are highly specific markers for rheumatoid arthritis [RA] and useful for predicting rheumatoid arthritis [RA] development and progression. We assessed the diagnostic value of anti-CCP antibodies in our patients with RA. Anti-CCP antibodies and rheumatoid factor [RF] titers were determined in 247 serum samples: 128 from RA patients, 119 from control group p48 from healthy controls, 71 from patients with rheumatic disease other than RA or hematologic malignancies. There were 128 [93 females, 35 males] patients with rheumatoid arthritis and 119 [78 females, 41 males ] controls. The sensitivity of Anti-CCP was 66.40% for diagnosis of RA with a specificity of 94.11%. The sensitivity of RF was 69.53% and its specificity was 81.51% In our patients Anti-CCP has a moderate sensitivity but high specificity for diagnosis of RA