The present work is aimed at exploring the clinical efficacy and safety of methotrexate (MTX) and leflunomide (LEF) combination therapy for rheumatoid arthritis. From June 2019 to June 2021, a total of 120 individuals with rheumatoid arthritis received a diagnosis. Sixty patients each were randomly assigned to the control and observation groups. The observation group received MTX and LEF combo medication while the control group only received MTX treatment. Clinical efficacy, complication incidence, and the alleviation of inflammatory markers, joint pain, and clinical symptoms were compared between the 2 groups. Posttreatment, the observation group had overall response rate of 96.66%, while the control group had 86.67%, with significant differences. Compared with pretreatment, both control and observation group patients showed decreasing trends of IL-1 levels and increasing trends of IL-10 levels posttreatment, with significant differences (P < 0.05). Compared with the control group, patients in the observation group had lower IL-1 and TNF-α levels with significant differences (P < 0.05) and higher levels of IL-10 with significant difference (P < 0.05). In both groups, the pain score and the number of painful joints were much lower than they were prior to treatment. Following treatment, the observation group displayed significantly lower levels of erythrocyte sedimentation rate, rheumatoid factor, and C-reactive protein than the control group (P < 0.05). Clinical measures in the observation group were all lower than those in the control group with statistically significant differences (P < 0.05). Moreover, the incidence rate of adverse reactions showed no significant difference between these 2 groups (P > 0.05). In conclusion, the combination therapy of MTX and LEF is efficacious for rheumatic arthritis.
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