Study question

Setting: Ten hospitals in Italy.

Patients: Patients under the age of 18 with a diagnosis of oligoarticular juvenile idiopathic arthritis were eligible to receive intra-articular steroids in at least two joints or who had received a single joint injection in shoulder, elbow, wrist ankle or knee which had flared within 12 months of a joint injection were eligible for randomisation.1

Patients were excluded if they had received methotrexate, biologic disease-modifying drugs, intra-articular or systemic steroids within 3 months prior to enrolment. Non-Steroidal Antinflammatory Drugs NSAIDs were discontinued prior to enrolment. Patients with single knee arthritis were also excluded as this has the highest rate of 12-month remission.

Intervention: 207 …