The new 2012 German recommendations for treating rheumatoid arthritis

Abstract

Abstract The German Society for Rheumatology recently published guidelines for the sequential therapy of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). These recommendations were developed as a transition from the 2010 EULAR (EUropean League Against Rheumatism) recommendations to the national clinical practice and are based on an updated systematic literature research and expert discussion. While most EULAR recommendations have remained unchanged, some were modified based on new evidence from randomized, controlled trials, current clinical practice, or national drug approval status. The guidelines also include a treatment algorithm for sequential therapy of RA with disease-modifying agents including biologics.