Past studies have suggested that patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) who consume a moderate amount of alcohol may experience lower disease activity and higher quality of life than non-drinkers. In this study, Alfredsson, et al. confirmed earlier studies’ claims that alcohol consumption reduces disease activity in a dose-dependent manner, and also indicated that patients who stopped drinking post-baseline experienced worsened disease activity, more pain and a lower quality of life.
Moderate Alcohol Use Could Be Safe with Methotrexate for RA
NEW YORK (Reuters Health)—In patients taking methotrexate for rheumatoid arthritis (RA), moderate alcohol consumption – that is, no higher than existing U.K. guidelines for the general population – was not associated with an increased risk of transaminitis, researchers say. The study is both the largest to examine alcohol and methotrexate (MTX) and the first to…