ACR: Smoking Increases Joint Erosion in RA

At the annual American College Rheumatology meeting, researchers announced evaluations of early rheumatoid patients and suggested that smoking may accelerate joint damage.

"In our early rheumatoid arthritis cohort, current smoking emerges as an independent factor for radiographic progression after two years of follow-up," Ruiz-Esquide, fellow in rheumatology at University Hospital Clinic, Barcelona, said. The patients in the study were followed prospectively after the doctors prescribed disease modifying anti-rheumatic drug therapy.

Read the full article at medpagetoday.com