In a new study, researchers found that a drug could help protect heart health in older people who develop rheumatoid arthritis.
The drug is called Methotrexate (MTX), and early and sustained use of it could reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke linked to arthritis.
The research was led by a team from the University of Toronto.
Rheumatoid arthritis is an inflammatory disease. Patients who develop the condition at an older age have a higher disease activity and inflammation in their joints.
This type of chronic systemic inflammation has been linked to atherogenesis, a disease of the arteries.
In the study, the team found that MTX may also influence this type of inflammation throughout the body.
Rheumatoid arthritis patients who have access to MTX earlier in their diagnosis reduce their risk of heart disease and stroke.
Patients who were treated with MTX within the first year of diagnosis experienced a lower rate of heart attack and stroke.
Those that were given the drug continuously and assessed in the last 12 months reduced their risk by 20%.
The team says while MTX has been vetted for safety and efficacy, it is also a chemotherapeutic agent and an immunosuppressive drug.
This means that some family physicians aren’t comfortable prescribing it.
Early access to treatment for rheumatoid arthritis is also dependent on a patient’s ability to see a rheumatologist, creating a barrier for older adults that can delay the effectiveness of the drug.
Primary care physicians may not always recognize the signs and symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis and the urgency of a referral to a rheumatologist.
Further delays in treatment may also result from a rheumatologist opting to use another form of treatment other than MTX.
The current study supports the recommendation that rheumatoid arthritis patients should receive methotrexate treatment early and continue to receive it in order to control the disease and reduce their risk of heart disease and stroke.
The study is the first to examine the effect of timing of MTX initiation in relation to long-term health outcomes.
The lead author of the study is the University of Toronto researcher Jessica Widdifield.
The study is published in The Journal of Rheumatology.
Copyright © 2019 Knowridge Science Report. All rights reserved.
