[Effect of combination therapy and nonsteroidal antirheumatic agents on acute phase reactants in patients with rheumatoid arthritis]. / Utjecaj kombinirane terapije i nesteroidnih antireumatika na reaktante akutne faze u bolesnika s reumatoidnim atritisom.

The purpose of the study was the evaluation of the effects of the combined therapy and non steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs on the acute phase reactants and clinical symptoms in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. The acute phase reactants that were observed were sedimentation of erythrocytes, C-reactive protein, haptoglobin and fibrinogen, while the clinical parameters that were observed were the number of swollen joints and the number of joints sensitive to the pressure. All the parameters were evaluated before the therapy initiation, there and six months after the therapy was finished. The treatment involved 80 patients with rheumatoid arthritis separated into three groups depending on the therapy applied: Group A (n = 29) received gold salts, sulphasalazine and tenoxicam, Group B (n = 25) received gold salts, sulphasalazine and indometacin, and Group C (n = 26) received gold salts, chloroquine and piroxicam. The results of our examination showed statistically significant descrease in value of acute phase reactants and of clinical indicators after the therapy carried out in each of the patient groups, while the values between the groups were of no statistical significance.