Is there a role for antibiotics in the treatment of patients with rheumatoid arthritis?

Despite many advances in the understanding and treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, its pathophysiology remains incompletely understood. An infectious aetiology of rheumatoid arthritis has long been postulated but, even though many continue to believe that there is a 'triggering agent for rheumat...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inDrugs (New York, N.Y.) Vol. 57; no. 3; pp. 279 - 282
Main Author O'DELL, J. R
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Auckland Adis International 01.03.1999
Subjects
Anti-Bacterial Agents - therapeutic use
Anti-Infective Agents - therapeutic use
Antibacterial agents
Antibiotics. Antiinfectious agents. Antiparasitic agents
Antirheumatic Agents - therapeutic use
Arthritis, Rheumatoid - drug therapy
Arthritis, Rheumatoid - etiology
Arthritis, Rheumatoid - physiopathology
Biological and medical sciences
Bones, joints and connective tissue. Antiinflammatory agents
Humans
Medical sciences
Minocycline - therapeutic use
Pharmacology. Drug treatments
Sulfasalazine - therapeutic use
Human
Sulfanilamide derivatives
Sulfonamide
Pathophysiology
Pathogenesis
Treatment efficiency
Tetracycline derivatives
Diseases of the osteoarticular system
Antiinflammatory agent
Arthritis
Review
Joint
Infection
Antibiotic
Chemotherapy
Treatment
Arthropathy
Minocycline
Sulfasalazine
Antibacterial agent
Mechanism of action
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Summary:Despite many advances in the understanding and treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, its pathophysiology remains incompletely understood. An infectious aetiology of rheumatoid arthritis has long been postulated but, even though many continue to believe that there is a 'triggering agent for rheumatoid arthritis', none has been identified. Currently, both sulfasalazine and minocycline have been shown to be effective treatments for rheumatoid arthritis and are being used increasingly. In the case of minocycline, it appears that its ability to inhibit metalloproteases is an important characteristic that may account for some or part of its action against rheumatoid arthritis. Whether the antibacterial effects of these drugs or others are important in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis continues to be investigated.
Bibliography:ObjectType-Article-2
SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1
ObjectType-Feature-3
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ObjectType-Review-1
ISSN:0012-6667
1179-1950
DOI:10.2165/00003495-199957030-00001