Helping doctors to prescribe the right medication

With so many new drugs on the market to treat arthritis and related disorders, how do doctors know which ones to use? A $3 million grant from the Agency for Health Care Research and Quality will fund a study at UAB to evaluate the best uses of the new agents.

“Many new drugs are being marketed for the treatment of musculoskeletal disorders,” says Kenneth Saag, M.D., UAB rheumatologist. “Our Center for Education and Research on Therapeutics is evaluating the effectiveness and safety of these new therapies and guiding physicians in their use. The aim is to make physicians aware of advances in therapeutics in order to improve patient care.”