Rheumatism is a common disease “Rheumatism is a class of common diseases, some of which require the assistance of others in their daily lives in severe cases, which seriously affects the quality of life.” said Professor Zou Hejian of Huashan Hospital, director of the rheumatology branch of the Shanghai Medical Association. According to him, the number of patients with rheumatic immune diseases in China is increasing year by year, and the prevalence of rheumatoid arthritis is about 0.3-0.5 percent, while the prevalence of ankylosing spondylitis is around 0.3 percent. Professor Bao Chunde, former chairman of Renji Hospital, pointed out that rheumatoid arthritis and ankylosing spondylitis and other rheumatic diseases are autoimmune diseases, which are caused by the patient’s immune system attacking their own tissues, causing systemic lesions in patients. Research shows that 75% of rheumatoid arthritis patients can develop bone destruction within 2 years of the onset of the disease, and up to 80% of patients become disabled 20 years after the onset of the disease; 1/3 of patients with the ability to work lose their ability to work within 2 years of the onset of the disease. In addition, rheumatic diseases can lead to increased mortality compared to the general population. Consultation rates are not high Although rheumatic diseases are a common condition, patient consultation rates are not high. A recent survey on the status of rheumatoid arthritis diagnosis and treatment found that the first consultation rheumatology (immunology) only 23.2% of patients with the disease, and most patients to the hospital’s first department for orthopedics and general internal medicine, resulting in many patients repeatedly in non-specialist medical treatment, resulting in long-term undiagnosed. This still refers to those who come to the hospital, there are more rheumatism patients simply do not enter the hospital. Shanghai Medical Association rheumatology branch deputy director of the Guanghua Hospital, Professor He Dongyi pointed out that the phenomenon of misdiagnosis and mistreatment is relatively common in China, resulting in a large number of patients with prolonged illness or disability. The main reason for this situation is the factors of both doctors and patients. Every year, a considerable number of patients with rheumatic and immune diseases, either because of their own lack of knowledge of the disease or because of the misjudgment of physicians in other departments, and consult other departments, such as internal medicine, orthopedics, pain, dermatology, Chinese medicine, miscellaneous diseases, etc., thus making a considerable number of patients unable to get professional treatment, or even delay the best time for treatment This makes a considerable number of patients unable to receive professional treatment, and even delay the best time for treatment and regret for life. Early diagnosis and treatment is the key In an interview with reporters, experts on the prevention and treatment of rheumatic diseases talk most about the word “early”, stressing the need for early diagnosis and early treatment of rheumatic diseases. Professor Zou Hejian said, because the cause of rheumatism is not very clear, so it is difficult to do early prevention. However, we should advocate that patients with the corresponding symptoms of rheumatism should go to the rheumatology department of regular hospitals in a timely manner. At present, many hospitals in China have very good laboratory testing equipment and technology, and early diagnosis of rheumatic diseases can be achieved. These early diagnosed patients have very good results through active treatment. Professor Bao Chunde said, now many rheumatoid arthritis patients can not move their joints, obviously due to untimely treatment, if early treatment, most patients can get relief. So patients must be given the confidence that only early treatment can achieve complete remission, and rheumatoid arthritis treatment is aimed at complete remission and improvement in quality of life. ”‘Standardization’ is the most critical component of rheumatic disease treatment. Each patient needs a very standardized and individualized treatment plan that can provide both symptom relief and complete control of the disease, making it possible to achieve drug discontinuation. With early diagnosis, early and aggressive treatment and standardized medication, the disease can be effectively controlled, the joints will not be swollen or painful, and the bone will not continue to be destroyed, and the patient can live completely like a normal person.” Professor He Dongyi also pointed out. Another data shows that previously 70 to 80 percent of rheumatoid arthritis patients end up with disability, while now, if patients can be detected early and after reasonable treatment, 80 percent of them can be well controlled without functional impairment and disability that affect normal life. Biological agents become the main protagonists Among the common drug treatment protocols, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), glucocorticoids and other disease-modifying drugs (DMARDs) are mainly used to achieve the effect of relieving patients’ pain and alleviating various symptoms. However, clinical observation shows that even if continuous treatment with traditional drugs for 5 to 10 years enables the activity index of the disease to be improved, its joint destruction still cannot be effectively controlled. The emergence of biologics (such as the first domestic marketed CITIC Guojian’s Yicep) is a milestone in the history of rheumatic disease treatment, its efficacy is significantly stronger than traditional DMARDs drugs. According to Prof. Bao, biologics (such as CITIC Guojian’s Ixep) are antagonists against specific pathogenic target molecules, blocking the occurrence and development of disease factors through molecular targeting, which are highly targeted compared to traditional small molecule compounds and have clear targets for treatment, breaking the limitation that original drugs only help patients relieve symptoms but cannot stop disease progression. It is an important weapon in the treatment of rheumatic diseases nowadays. Ixep is the earliest biologic agent in the field of rheumatism that is marketed in China and used by the most patients in China.
Its advantages of “biological targeting” and “targeted removal” are rapid onset of action and precise efficacy, which can specifically bind the excess TNF in human body and block the inflammatory reaction and bone destruction process. Since its launch, the product has brought hope to tens of thousands of rheumatism patients and significantly improved their living conditions. Experts point out that rheumatism is a chronic disease like the familiar diabetes and hypertension. Moreover, as rheumatism will have painful symptoms clinically, patients who cannot get early treatment may also lead to disability, and many patients are often unable to work normally because of pain and disability, so we need to pay attention and pay attention to the fact that once diagnosed, we should apply biologic treatment early according to the condition to control the disease, so as not to delay the best time for treatment and minimize the pain of patients and avoid their disability .