Wednesday, July 05, 2006

Rheumatoid Arthritis Linked to Asthma

It's not surprising that a drug that treats rheumatoid arthritis would also treat asthma, as they are both diseases that involve chronic inflammation and both are "diseases of civilization" that accumulating scientific evidence is showing have an underlying cause of a modern diet that is in conflict with human biology.

Rheumatoid Arthritis Drug Could Fight Problem Asthma
February 16, 2006 08:45:57 PM PST
By Serena Gordon
HealthDay Reporter
Yahoo! Health: Arthritis News

THURSDAY, Feb. 16 (HealthDay News) -- Using a well-known rheumatoid arthritis drug to reduce high levels of an inflammatory protein could be a new means of fighting severe asthma, British researchers report.

Their study found that people with severe asthma have higher-than-normal concentrations of an inflammation-linked cytokine called tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNFa). Reducing the levels using a TNF-inhibiting drug, etanercept, reduced asthma symptoms in people with refractory -- hard to manage -- disease.

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