[Progress on rheumatoid arthritis in elderly].

During choosing non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs(NSAIDs), risk factors should be evaluated in elder patients with rheumatoid arthritis. The present study focused on biological therapies, and elderly patients should be more concerned about the risk of infection when used it. Traditional Chinese medicine has advantages of obvious curative effect, especially for tripterygium wilfordii, large clinical trial on western and Chinese medical accurate drug strategies for old patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Old patients are easier to suffer from cardiac diseases and interstitial lung disease, rheumatoid arthritis could be controlled along with the treatment for coexistent disease. The incidence of rheumatoid arthritis in old patients is the same with other RA, and need to treat to target based on the aim of relieve pain and reduce activity of diseases, while the clinical charteristic and treatment target in elder patients with rheumatoid arthritis were not similar with other aged patient, so treatment standard target would vary with aging. Resent clinical studies excluded old patients, lead to lack of evidence-based medicine data. Clinical study for elder patients with rheumatoid arthritis are energetically carrying out, and could provide base and guide for clinical treatment.