There has been a revolution in treatments for inflammatory arthritis. Mostly, this is due to the introduction of biologics, particularly TNF inhibitors. These have changed approach to treatment in two ways. First, they appear substantially more effective than conventional drugs. Second, they are far more expensive than traditional treatment approaches. One consequence of this therapeutic revolution is a need to better understand arthritis and to place the new biological treatments into the context of existing management approaches.

David L Scott is Professor of Clinical Rheumatology at Kings College School of Medicine, London, UK. He also leads the clinical service at Kings College Hospital, London. His medical training was in Leeds, and he was introduced to rheumatology by working with Professor Verna Wright. He subsequently spent some years in Birmingham, completing research training for his MD with Professor Kenneth Walton and Professor Paul Bacon. He was an ARC and Wellcome Trust travelling fellow in the US and Europe and subsequently held the Muir Hambro Fellowship of the Royal College of Physicians. His research focuses on the treatment and outcome of arthritis, and he has written over 250 papers and been involved in 25 books in the field. He spent 5 years as editor of Rheumatology and is currently honorary Heberden Librarian at the British Society for Rheumatology. He is involved with many patient groups including Arthritis Care and the Arthritis and Musculoskeletal Alliance. He also serves on the Disability Living Allowance Advisory Board of the Department of Work and Pensions.

Rheumatoid arthritis.- Spondyloarthropathies.- Symptomatic drug treatment.- Disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs.- Biologics in rheumatoid arthritis.- Systemic and local steroids.- Non-pharmacological therapy.