Methorexate

[Guest guest]

This article was sent to me by one of my SBI support women (silicone

breast implant) I thought it would interesting for those of us who

are taking this drug.

Sharyn

Rheumatoid Arthritis Drug May Extend Survival

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - The drug methotrexate may not only treat

rheumatoid arthritis, but could also help patients live longer,

results of a new study suggest.

US researchers found that among 1,240 patients seen at one arthritis

center, methotrexate treatment was associated with a 60% lower risk

of death during the study period. The drug appeared particularly

protective against deaths from cardiovascular disease, the study

authors report in the April 6th issue of The Lancet. Rheumatoid

arthritis is a chronic disease marked by inflammation in the joints

that causes pain, swelling and loss of mobility. It is an autoimmune

disease, meaning it arises from an abnormal immune system attack on

the body's own tissue. Methotrexate, which modulates immune system

activity, can ease rheumatoid arthritis symptoms and slow the joint

damage. Aside from the joint damage, people with rheumatoid

arthritis have been found to have a shorter-than-average life

expectancy, and may face a higher risk of death from cardiovascular

disease, infection and cancer, the report indicates. Whether

methotrexate treatment makes any difference in patients' death risk

has been unknown. " Our data indicate that methotrexate may provide a

substantial survival benefit, largely by reducing cardiovascular

mortality, " report Dr. Hyon K. Choi of Harvard Medical School in

Boston, Massachusetts, and colleagues. The authors suggest that

methotrexate's protection against cardiovascular deaths may stem

from its effects on inflammation, which is believed to play a role

in artery disease. " Our data raise a further intriguing possibility

that methotrexate reduces rheumatoid arthritis activity and

cardiovascular mortality by suppressing some of these shared

(inflammatory) mechanisms, " Choi's team writes. Of the 1,240 study

patients, nearly 600 were put on methotrexate at some point.

Overall, these patients were in worse shape than those who never

started the drug. But when the investigators accounted for this,

patients on methotrexate were 60% less likely to die of any cause

over an average of 6 years of follow-up. They were 70% less likely

to die of cardiovascular disease, specifically. Overall, 191

patients died during the study. If methotrexate does offer a

survival benefit, the researchers point out, that would " set a

standard " against which similar rheumatoid arthritis drugs could be

compared.

gigi*

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?

tmpl=story & cid=594 & ncid=751 & e=6 & u=/nm/20020405/hl_nm/arthritis_drug_1