Abstract In the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA), it is recommended to use methotrexate or leflunomide as the first synthetic basic anti-inflammatory drug. The study included 27 patients from February to November 2019.According to the instructions for use, LEFNO was prescribed in the first 3 days at 100 mg / day, then at 20 mg / day. During the visit to the doctor, the number of painful, swollen joints, the severity of pain was assessed using a visual analogue scale (VAS); carried out laboratory examination: clinical blood test, determination of ESR and CRP level. RA activity was judged by the DAS 28 index. For 6 months. on therapy with LEFNO the average number of swollen joints decreased from 11.7 to 4.1, and the number of painful joints – from 12.7 to 8.5; the intensity of pain according to the VAS decreased on average from 72.3 to 32.1 mm; ESR – from 41.5 to 25.8 mm / h, CRP – from 28.9 to 14.5. The study did not reveal any serious side effects of the drug. The drug was discontinued only in 3 patients: in 1 due to the development of adverse events, in 1 due to insufficient efficacy, and in 1 for non-medical reasons.
Thus, we can conclude that the results obtained in patients with rheumatoid arthritis indicate a fairly high clinical efficacy of the drug LEFNO. Allows you to achieve a rapid clinical response, which may be of particular interest for general clinical practice.
Keywords rheumatoid arthritis; LEFNO (leflunomide).