Earlier diagnosis and treatment start may be among the key factors in a trend towards increased incidence of sustained remission (SR) in Swedish patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), a new study found. All adult patients with RA registered in the Swedish Rheumatology Quality register through 2012 with ≥3 registered visits were eligible (n=29,084 patients). Researchers found:

• Of patients with symptom onset in the 1980s, 1990s, and 2000s, 35.0, 43.0, and 45.6% reached SR, respectively, with the odds of SR higher in every decade compared to the one before.
• Hazard ratio for reaching SR was 1.15 for each year from 1994 to 2009 vs the year before.
• 5 years after symptom onset in 2009, 45.3% of patients had reached SR vs 15.9% in 1999.
• Adherence to national and international guidelines recommending the treat-to-target approach may have also been a contributing factor.