Comparative study to assess the effectiveness of methotrexate and tofacitinib in patients diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis

Introduction: An inflammatory condition called rheumatoid arthritis (RA) results in persistent joint inflammation, which is painful and incapacitating. There are no racial or ethnic disparities in the prevalence of RA, which is believed to be between 1% and 2% worldwide. Inflammation is indicated by elevated blood levels of the C-Reactive Protein (CRP), which can be used to identify and track the illness. RA patients often experience a heavy burden of pain, disability, and limited activities, all of which have an impact on their health-related quality of life. Given the rising prevalence of RA worldwide, it is necessary to evaluate the efficacy and safety of medications and offer appropriate treatment to enhance patients' quality of life. Methodology: This was a prospective study conducted in orthopaedic OPD of ESIC Model Hospital Bari Brahamna in Jammu district. All the subjects (n=100) meeting the inclusion and exclusion criteria were briefed about the purpose of the study and the informed consent was obtained. The subject’s demographic details and responses were collected. All the enrolled patients were assessed at the time of starting the treatment, then at 2nd month and 5th month. The collected data were entered in microsoft excel and appropriate descriptive analysis was performed. Results: A total of 100 samples were enrolled in the study based on inclusion and exclusion criteria. Out of which 50% of the participants were on Methotrexate (MTX) and the other 50% were on Tofacitinib. Majority of the subjects in the study were women (79%) and men (21%) . On comparing the effectiveness of both Methotrexate and Tofacitinib, it was found that the rate of reduction of CRP levels and ESR was better with Tofacitinib in comparison to Methotrexate. Conclusion: From this study, Tofacitinib concludes to be more effective than Methotrexate with regard to its ability to decrease CRP levels and ESR in high disease activity patients.