LETTER
Minocycline in Rheumatoid Arthritis
Richard Meehan, MD
1 September 1995 | Volume 123 Issue 5 | Page 391
TO THE EDITOR:
The extremely well-designed study by Tilley and colleagues [1] has many features that should allow the authors to detect a statistically significant difference between placebo and drug treatment groups. The authors successfully showed a benefit (albeit small [54% compared with 39%]) in the drug treatment group. However, they did not report additional specific information on the corticosteroid dose and the specific nonsteroidal agent received in both groups or on the changes that could have developed between the control and treatment groups over time. Specifically, was there a statistically significant difference between objective variables such as joint swelling before and after the trial in the patients in both groups whose corticosteroid dose or nonsteroidal agent did not change? Perhaps a similar trial without protocol violations could compare minocycline with standard drugs used to treat patients with mild to moderate rheumatoid arthritis, such as plaquenil, azulfidine, or oral gold. Such a study would allow clinicians to determine whether this therapy might have a practical clinical role in managing patients with early, mild rheumatoid arthritis.
|
Author and Article Information
|
|---|
University of Colorado Health Sciences Center; Denver, CO 80262
1. Tilley BC. Alarcon GS, Heyse SP, Trenthem DE, Neuner R, Kaplan D, et al. Minocycline in rheumatoid arthritis. A 48-week, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. Ann Intern Med. 1995; 122:81-9.
About Letters
The Editors welcome submissions for possible publication in the Letters section. Authors of letters should:
•Include no more than 300 words of text, three authors, and five references
•Type with double-spacing
•Send three copies of the letter, an authors' form signed by all authors, and a cover letter describing any conflicts of interest related to the contents of the letter.
Letters commenting on an Annals article will be considered if they are received within 6 weeks of the time the article was published. Only some of the letters received can be published. Published letters are edited and may be shortened; tables and figures are included only selectively. Authors will be notified that the letter has been received. If the letter is selected for publication, the author will be notified about 3 weeks before the publication date. Unpublished letters cannot be returned.
Annals welcomes electronically submitted letters.
Top
Author & Article Info
References
Article
