Common arthritis drug found to lower blood pressure and risk of heart disease (Methotrexate -7.4 mm Hg)

Medical Xpress / Flinders University / Annals of Medicine ^ | Sept. 3, 2025 | Arduino A. Mangoni et al

[ConservativeMind]

Methotrexate, a common medication used to treat rheumatoid arthritis, has a newly recognized useful secondary effect of lowering blood pressure and potentially reduces the risk of heart disease in people with this condition.

A new study led by researchers, has shown that methotrexate significantly lowers blood pressure when compared to another arthritis drug, sulfasalazine, marking the first clear evidence of this effect in newly diagnosed patients.

Occurring in about 1 in 100 people, rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a common autoimmune disease which leads to inflammation and pain in the connective tissue of a patient's joints.

Over six months, the researchers followed 62 newly diagnosed adults who had not yet started treatment.

Half were given methotrexate and the other half received sulfasalazine. Researchers then measured their blood pressure, joint inflammation, and stiffness in their arteries at the beginning of the study, then again after one and six months.

Professor Arduino Mangoni says they wanted to see if methotrexate could lower systolic blood pressure, which indicates how much pressure your blood is exerting against artery walls when your heart beats.

"We found that methotrexate lowered systolic blood pressure by an average of 7.4 mmHg compared with people taking sulfasalazine," says Professor Mangoni.

"This kind of reduction is considered meaningful because even a small drop in blood pressure can lower the risk of serious heart problems like heart attacks and strokes."

Interestingly, this benefit did not seem to be linked to changes in either arthritis symptoms or the stiffness of arteries, suggesting that it might be helping the heart in other ways, like calming inflammation or improving how blood vessels work.

[ConservativeMind]

Methotrexate lowered blood pressure by 7.4 mm Hg over another common arthritis drug.

If you have both conditions, it may be worth a switch in medicines.

[ConservativeMind]

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[wardaddy]

I take consentyx for psoriatic arthritis
Zepbound for heart failure with normal LVEF

side benefits to some dope

[Getready]

Methotrexate....uh...uh...before recommending a switch ..read the drug monograph...
Look up methotrexate, monograph, professional...in your search engine...

My neighbor developed pulmonary fibrosis from methotrexate for rheumatoid arthritis....it was part of the reason she died...nasty little drug...

[lucky american]

Methotrexate is what killed my father. No thanks.

[EQAndyBuzz]

“I take consentyx for psoriatic arthritis”

I tried Cosentyx, Humira, Taltz, Skyrizi, Enbrel. Now I am on Bimzelx with a Lefludimide booster. That seems to work a little better. The Methotrexate seemed to work but it made me more goofy than I already am.

I wish you the best. I’ve had Psoriatic Arthritis for going on 10 years. It isn’t a pleasure. After my injection, I am down for close to a day before I feel better. It’s worth it.

[gleeaikin]

Over 10 years ago my partner had a hard fall on his hip from an ice slip. He broke the small bone that connects the thigh bone to the hip socket (acetabulem sp?). After limping around in severe pain for several days, he finally went for an X ray and was immediately operated on to insert 3 screws to stabilize the bone. Now he has a lot of pain, and after an Xray, doctor has recommended hip replacement surgery as he is suffering from osteo-arthritis. I have been giving him glucosamine-condroitin with MSM, krill oil and other nutrients recommended for joint health. However, I know nothing about natural helps for osteo-arthritis. Any suggestions will be appreciated. We are not looking forward to his 6 weeks of recovery, and my 6 weeks of caring for him in his recovery.

I figure if I can avoid cataract surgery and have regrown 1 inch from my old age shrinkage, surely there is something good out there in the way of supplements for osteo-arthritis. He is 80 and I am 87. We are already taking a full complement of the more common supplements and are in generally good health. I have been giving him 3 mg. a day Boron. Perhaps I should double that, I know it helped my lower back pain which developed when I was 65.

[ConservativeMind]

Based on prior knowledge of osteoarthritis studies, I would take each day:

- 12 mg of boron
- A highly available curcumin like Meriva or C3 Complex

Some or all of these:

- 5 grams of Fortigel Type 2 collagen (a small scoop of powder)
- 2 grams of BioCell Type 2 collagen (four capsules)
- One capsule UC-ii Type 2 collagen (a very tiny amount of raw cartilage)

It sounds like he likely gets the other major items, already.

[EQAndyBuzz]

All foods that have anti-inflammatory properties is the first thing. Change of diet is tough to do, but it can be done. Replace salt with spices and flavorings. There are some mixes that contain everything but salt. I think Mrs. Dash makes it. I take glucosamine with condroitin with curcumin. I also drink one shot of good bourbon daily. That’s only because life is too short to drink bad bourbon.

[gleeaikin]

I will follow up with more Boron, although I am finding it is less available recently. The drug companies interfering with supply? My partner recently gave me a bunch of supplements his late wife no longer needs. I may PM you after I have had a chance to review what I have received. I know I saw several types of curcumin bottles from various companies, and have already been giving us Turmeric/curcurmin from Puritan’s Pride.

I am wondering if cooked cartilage is helpful—the kind leached out of bones with long cooking of pot roast or ribs. I know they are a good source of calcium. Can you name a company that sells the raw cartilage. I use Puritan’s Pride, but I don’t think they sell that, and their last catalog no longer had Boron. I now have names and contact info for a number of other companies like Samson’s, Life Extension, etc.

[gleeaikin]

I’m not sure salt is a dietary issue for us, but will do some more research. We already have a pretty healthy diet, but I am investigating ways to improve it and our intestinal bacteria as well. I don’t drink and he occasionally mixes a little grain alcohol with his coffee.

[ConservativeMind]

I would not chance raw cartilage. The actual amount left in UC-ii is 10 mg, from a 40 mg subcomponent.

I’ve used the NOW Foods version.

[ConservativeMind]

Skin and joints and bones all can be cooked and used as collagen. There are studies on peptide forms, and I use those and provided the sources above.

There is argument around if peptides provide much more help over whole collagen, and the peptide forms I named have studies and are not standard generic peptides like some powders provide. My thinking is that as we age, we can't break food components down well (little stomach acid, processes broken to utilize them, etc.), so the peptides become the better form.

It's not unlike the amino acids glycine and cysteine (NAC) that we can't produce enough of, when older, to let cells make glutathione, or how taurine can help us make SOD again. These are previous studies I posted a while back.