To elucidate the clinical characteristics of patients with elderyly-onset rheumatoid arthritis (EORA), we compared the clinical features, laboratory data, and clinical course of 17 patients with elderly-onset (age at onset; over 60 years, average 63.0 years with) 19 patients with younger-onset (below 50 years, average 38.3 years). The group with EORA had an increased incidence of hypertension, diabetes mellitus, cardiovascular disease, ischemic heart disease. There was no significant difference in the levels of ESR, CRP, IgG-RF titer, serum IgG concentration at entry, and the clinical course during two years follow-up between the 2 groups. In spite of EORA patients having a higher prevalence of complications to drugs including disease-modifying anti rheumatic drugs (DMARDs) and steroids, we considered that DMARDs (especially GST) and steroids must be used to prevent rapid bone destruction. In addition, surgical procedures including joint replacement were recommended to maintain the EORA patients activity of daily living.
