The combined therapy, given during the first year of disease onset, did not influence inflammation, disability or structural changes in the long term.
Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases August, 2003
No surprise here. I have great disdain for nearly all rheumatologists as I believe that this is the only specialty in medicine that has absolutely no reason to exist. They only prescribe symptomatic therapies that in no way, shape or form treat the cause of disease, and most of the drugs they recommend wind up devastating the health of those with RA.
Fortunately, there are effective alternatives. I have treated over 3,000 patients with RA, and the vast majority of them seem to do better with simple nutrition-based solutions. It is very rare where I actually need to prescribe drugs for a patient.
There are four basic steps that will help most people with RA. They are:
If you know someone with RA please have him or her review my comprehensive program for treating RA for much more detailed information. You can also review my article on helpful tools to treat rheumatoid arthritis.