National Knowledge Week on Rheumatoid Arthritis: 21-25 April 2008

An update of the evidence on this topic produced by the NLH Musculoskeletal Specialist Library.

The management of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) has improved dramatically over recent years. This has been driven by our greater understanding of the pathological processes that underlie it. It is particularly exciting to consider that inducing remission in RA is now a realistic goal – something that would have been unheard of in the past.

The RA National Knowledge Week provides an excellent opportunity to highlight some of these achievements in the form of concise reviews and summaries from leaders in their fields with topics selected by a panel of experts. The items are covered under the broad headings of basic science (with a focus on how advances in laboratory work can help us understand disease); clinical aspects (emphasising the fact that RA does not only affect joints but also cause problems in other parts of the body); drug treatment (how and when we should best treat this condition); other treatment modalities (reminding us that other therapies such as physiotherapy may be very important in RA) and surgery (whilst used much less as a treatment for RA today, surgery can play a very important role).

These advances in understanding and treating RA, summarised in these articles, have resulted in a vastly improved outlook for patients today.

Find out more at http://www.library.nhs.uk/musculoskeletal