Musculoskeletal diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis are complex multifactorial disorders that are chronic in nature and debilitating for patients. A number of drug families are available to clinicians to manage these disorders but few tests exist to target these to the most responsive patients. As a consequence, drug failure and switching to drugs with alternate modes of action is common. In parallel, a limited number of laboratory tests are available which measure biological indicators or 'biomarkers' of disease activity, autoimmune status, or joint damage. There is a growing awareness that assimilating the fields of drug selection and diagnostic tests into 'companion diagnostics' could greatly advance disease management and improve outcomes for patients. This review aims to highlight: the current applications of biomarkers in rheumatology with particular focus on companion diagnostics; developments in the fields of proteomics, genomics, microbiomics, imaging and bioinformatics and how integration of these technologies into clinical practice could support therapeutic decisions.
Keywords: bioinformatics.companion diagnostics; genomics; imaging; microbiomics; proteomics; rheumatology; stratified medicine.