@article{Goud_2021, title={Prevalence of Rheumatoid Arthritis and DMARDs Usage in Indian Population: A Cross-Sectional Study}, volume={15}, url={https://www.asiapharmaceutics.info/index.php/ajp/article/view/4148}, DOI={10.22377/ajp.v15i3.4148}, abstractNote={<p>Background: Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is an autoimmune disorder characterized by symmetric and erosive<br />synovitis with extra-articular involvement in some cases. RA prevalence in India is 0.75%. The study is to<br />estimate the prevalence of RA in the South Indian population and to determine the demographic characteristics<br />such as gender, age, geographical locality, and usage of antirheumatic drugs. Methodology: This prospective<br />cross-sectional study was conducted in 600 patients of both male and female at advance rheumatology center. The<br />patients were selected based on inclusion and exclusion criteria. Patients who are suspected and diagnosed newly<br />with RA, patients who are already with RA attending the rheumatoid center and are on therapy, and patients age<br />equal to and above 16 years either gender are included in the study. Patients with other arthritic and immunologic<br />problems such as osteoarthritis, psoriatic arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus, spondylosis, and osteoporosis<br />were excluded from the study and patient’s age below 16 years are excluded from the study. Results: Among<br />600 patients presented to advance rheumatology center, 174 patients are identified with classical symptoms of RA,<br />in those female and male patients are 132 and 42, respectively. The mean age of total patients is 45.51 ± 12.09. The<br />estimated prevalence was found to be 0.29 or 29% (95% confidence interval is 0.25–0.33). Disease-modifying<br />antirheumatic drugs (36.9%) are mostly prescribed. Conclusion: This study witnessed a rise in the prevalence of<br />RA in South Indian population which gives alarming signals to the health authority and policymakers to increase<br />the awareness on RA in India.</p>}, number={3}, journal={Asian Journal of Pharmaceutics (AJP)}, author={Goud, Dr. Thirumaleswara}, year={2021}, month={Nov.} }