Successful treatment with clarithromycin for a patient with rheumatoid arthritis

Macrolide antibiotics provide not only anti-bacterial activity but also anti-inflammatory effects. We report herein a case of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) successfully treated using clarithromycin (CAM), a macrolide, in expectation of its anti-inflammatory effects. A 77-year-old woman suffering from RA, presented with exacerbation of arthralgia and articular swellings. Because she was suffering from non-tuberculous mycobacterium and could not receive biological agents, CAM was successfully added to prednisolone and a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug which had been administered before exacerbation. The present case suggests that CAM treatment may be effective for RA.