Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is an autoimmune disease suffered by millions of people worldwide. It can significantly affect the patient’s quality of life by damaging not only the joints but also organs such as the lungs and the heart. RA is normally treated using nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), glucocorticoids, disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs), and biologics. These active agents often cause side effects and offer low efficacy due to their lack of specificity and limited retention time. In an attempt to improve RA treatments, hydrogel-based systems have been proposed as drug delivery carriers. Due to their exceptional adaptability and biocompatibility, hydrogels have the potential of enhancing the delivery of RA therapy through different administration routes in an efficient and effective manner. In this review, we explore the application of hydrogel systems as potential carriers in RA treatment. Additionally, we discuss recent work in the field and highlight the required hydrogel properties, depending on the administration route. The outstanding potential of hydrogel systems as carriers for RA was demonstrated; however, there is extensive research yet to be done to improve available treatments for RA.

中文翻译：

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基于水凝胶载体的类风湿关节炎治疗递送系统

类风湿性关节炎（RA）是一种自身免疫性疾病，全世界有数百万人患有这种疾病。它不仅会损害关节，还会损害肺和心脏等器官，从而严重影响患者的生活质量。 RA 通常使用非甾体抗炎药 (NSAID)、糖皮质激素、缓解病情抗风湿药 (DMARD) 和生物制剂进行治疗。由于缺乏特异性和有限的保留时间，这些活性剂经常引起副作用并且疗效低。为了改善 RA 治疗，人们提出基于水凝胶的系统作为药物输送载体。由于其卓越的适应性和生物相容性，水凝胶有潜力通过不同的给药途径以高效且有效的方式增强 RA 治疗的传递。在这篇综述中，我们探讨了水凝胶系统作为潜在载体在 RA 治疗中的应用。此外，我们讨论了该领域的最新工作，并强调了所需的水凝胶特性，具体取决于给药途径。水凝胶系统作为 RA 载体的突出潜力得到了证明；然而，还需要进行广泛的研究来改善 RA 的现有治疗方法。