Finding an effective medication and sticking with it are very
important when you live with a serious disease such as
rheumatoid arthritis. RA doesn’t damage only your joints, it can
attack your lungs, heart, eyes, and the tissue surrounding your
joints. Disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs) are
commonly used to treat RA by slowing down the disease.
Traditional DMARDs which have been used for decades to treat RA
include methotrexate, (Plaquenil) hydroxychloroquine, Azulfidine
(sulfasalazine), and Arava (leflunomide). Each of these
medications is available as an oral pill, taken either daily or
weekly. Methotrexate is available both as a pill and as an
injection. Biologics, a more recent class of DMARDs, are
genetically engineered medications which copy the effects of
substances naturally made by the body’s immune system to help
block inflammation. These drugs can target specific immune
system abnormalities which lead to joint inflammation and other
problems caused by RA. Biologic drugs are very expen