Copper in rheumatoid arthritis: the relationship to disease activity

ABSTRACT

A prospective study to detect the role of copper [Cu] in rheumatoid arthritis [RA] and its relation to disease activity was conducted in 185 rheumatoid arthritic patients with various states of disease activity. The results clearly demonstrated that plasma CU [but not erythrocyte Cu] had a direct relation to disease activity. It also suggested that plasma Cu might provide an additional and useful laboratory test for the assessment of disease activity in RA