Does injectable gold retard radiologic evidence of joint damage in psoriatic arthritis?

Reuven Mader
Dafna D. Gladman
Jennifer Long
Jacqueline Gough
Vernon T. Farewell

The Psoriatic Arthritis Clinic, University of Toronto Rheumatic Disease Unit, The Wellesley Hospital, Toronto, Ontario, and the Departments of Statistics and Actuarial Science and Health Studies, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario

(Original manuscript submitted 12/7/94; received in revised form 26/10/94; accepted 28/10/94)

Abstract

The aim of this investigation has been to assess whether gold therapy prevents radiologic progression of psoriatic arthritis (PsA) over a period of 2 y. Eighteen patients (11 males, 7 females, mean age 42 y, DD 6.5 y) who were initiated on intramuscular gold during their attendance at the Psoriatic Arthritis Clinic were studied. For each gold-treated patient, 2 matched control patients, who had never had gold therapy, were identified from the PsA database. The control patients were similar to the patient population in gender, age, disease duration, number of actively inflamed joints, radiologic score and other medications used, and were followed in the clinic for at least 24 months. Actively inflamed joint count decreased by 40% or more in 9 of 18 gold-treated patients at 12 months. Seven patients continued gold for 24 months, while 11 discontinued gold for either lack of efficacy (4) or side effects (7). A comparison of the change in radiographic evidence of damage in the peripheral joints between the 18 gold-treated patients and the 36 controls revealed that there was no statistical difference in disease progression. These results suggest that gold therapy does not prevent the progression of damage in patients with psoriatic arthritis.

Clin Invest Med 1995; 18 (2): 139-143

Table of contents: CIM vol. 18, no. 2