Todd Unger
OMAHA (KPTM)- When it comes to the aches and pains of arthritis patients, folks have long believed dishing out more money meant better treatment.
But a new study being released this week by a doctor from the University of Nebraska Medical Center suggests otherwise.
Dr. James O'Dell is a longtime rheumatoid arthritis specialist.
The disease affects nearly 2.5 million Americans, according to O'Dell's hospital.
When John Weyant approached the doctor with his rheumatoid arthritis four years ago, O'Dell knew he had to act quickly.
"People will rheumatoid arthritis die prematurely because they have heart attack and strokes. They have heart attacks and strokes because they're inflamed," says O'Dell.
The doctor enlisted Weyant in a two-year long comparative effectiveness study exploring two different treatments.
In the study, one of the treatments used a "triple therapy" combination of the synthetic drugs methotrexate, sulfasalazine, and hydroxychloroquine.
The other used methotrexate, but also the biologic etanercept.
O'Dell says although biologic treatment had long been thought the most effective way to treat rheumatoid arthritis, the results of the study suggests the two treatments actually offer very similar relief for patients.
"The reason that's really important is because the toxicity implications and the cost of these medicines is greatly different," says O'Dell.
Weyant is a great example.
He initially saw promising results using the biologic treatment, but soon realized it would prove too costly long-term.
"I found out it was going to be pretty expensive. I said I can't afford $1,000 a month out of my pocket," says Weyant.
Since the two treatments yield virtually the same results, though, the 73-year-old was able to switch to the "triple therapy" combination.
He now pays only $100 a month out-of-pocket after insurance, and the savings come without any cost to his health.
He puts the extra cash to good use golfing and working out, two activities he had stopped because the pain was too intense.
The larger study took a look at more than 750 newly diagnosed rheumatoid arthritis patients.
Dr. O'Dell, the study's co-author, will help present the findings this week at a conference in Philadelphia.
Even though he says the results are promising, he stresses further research needs to be done.
