ABSTRACT
Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is the most prevalent form of inflammatory arthritis. It is a profoundly serious and severe disease that if it goes untreated could have severe consequences to the joints and health of the patient who carries this diagnosis. The treatment of RA has dramatically changed since the year 2000, with the discovery of the TNFis, then other biologics, and finally the JAKi. All these new medications with or without methotrexate in combination, tight control and treat to target have produced a revolution in the outcome of this disease. We reviewed and summarized the treatment options, and the most significant papers for each one of these new drugs. The reader could have a full picture with all the references of the recent publications. We also updated the biosimilar situation in RA, as well as the new drugs that will be coming to the market in the next 5 years.
ABSTRACT
We report a 65-year-old caucasian male, who presented cryptogenic organizing pneumonia (COP) as first manifestation of rheumatoid arthritis. The patient started with fever, myalgias and progressive dyspnea in October 2004. The chest X-ray (CXR) and high resolution computed tomographic scan (HRCT) showed diffuse alveolar exudates with air bronchogram in both the lungs. An open lung biopsy was done and the histological image was compatible with COP. Six months later, a diagnosis of RA was made. Treatment with oral methotrexate and etanercept was prescribed with improvement in symptoms, physical examination, and laboratory tests. Even though COP after the joint involvement is found more frequently in RA, in rare cases it could be the first manifestation of this illness.
