The face of Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) has changed during the last two decades, either on the comprehension of its pathophysiology, or its clinical presentation as well as the available treatments and their strategy of initiation/modification. New targeted drugs have been made available, which are very effective but costly, allowing better control of the disease and making remission a realistic goal. It has become necessary to create new objective tools for the evaluation of RA activity, in order to optimize therapeutics and make remission an achievable goal, or failing that, a low disease activity. Many tools have been used, allowing the rapid and reliable appreciation of disease activity. However, measuring disease activity should always be correlated with structural remission, detected by using imaging techniques. Rheumatologists and other physicians involved in the management of rheumatoid arthritis should be initiated to the objective evaluation of rheumatoid arthritis using modern tools, in order to adjust treatment optimally.
THU0069 How many rheumatoid arthritis patients in remission experience pain? what types and with what frequency were painkillers received? is reaching remission a realistic goal?
