The treatment of rheumatoid arthritis with OM-8930, a bacterial immunostimulating agent.

OM 8930, a bacterial product with immunostimulatory capacities, was studied for its efficacy in the long-term treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Ten (10) patients with active seropositive rheumatoid arthritis were treated intermittently for six months with the agent and were evaluated according to clinical, laboratory and immunological parameters. OM-8930 has been demonstrated to be an effective drug in reducing arthritic activity in rheumatoid arthritis. It is slow acting without any anti-inflammatory capacities and resembles other slow acting agents like Levamisol, Penicillamin, etc. OM-8930 provoked a long lasting immunological stimulation allowing a normalization of lymphocytes counts, increasing the number of active T-cells and enhancing lymphocyte mitogenic response. No adverse clinical-laboratory reactions were recorded throughout the study, which indicates that the agent is suitable for long-term use in humans.