Background

Biological treatment is one of the most modern methods of treating rheumatoid arthritis (RA), used in cases where other treatment methods have not sufficiently improved the patient’s health.

Objectives

The impact of biological therapy on the clinical response and functioning of patients with rheumatoid arthritis.

Material and methods

The study used the analysis of medical records containing data on the number of tender and swollen joints, CRP, ESR, DAS28, a questionnaire regarding sociodemographic data, the HAQ-DI scale and the VAS scale. The study included 100 patients diagnosed with RA undergoing treatment with a biological drug.

Results

The average duration of the disease in the study group was 12.07 years. The mean value of the HAQ-DI coefficient was 0.88. Among 78% respondents, the value of the HAQ coefficient was below 1, which means that the patients assessed their functioning as well from their own point of view. The analysis showed the impact of biological treatment on reducing the number of tender joints (from 11.91 to 4.52), swollen joints (from 8.71 to 2.66), reducing CRP (from 24.21 to 3.21 mg/L), reduction of ESR (from 33.19 to 9.88 mm/hr) and reduction in pain intensity assessed with the VAS scale (from 6.83 to 2.97); p < 0.05.

Conclusions

Biological treatment reduces the number and severity of inflammatory changes in the joints of patients with RA. The observed improvement is manifested in a reduced number of swollen and tender joints. During biological therapy, the level of inflammatory markers such as CRP and ESR was reduced, which confirms the effectiveness of the treatment.