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. 2021 Aug 20;41(1):19–31. doi: 10.1007/s10067-021-05819-z

Key Points:

• High rate of long-term glucocorticoid (GC) treatment is recorded in polymyalgia rheumatica (PMR), being 77%, 51%, and 25% of patients still on GCs after respectively 1, 2, and 5 years.

• A pooled relapse rate of 43% at 1 year, even remarkable, can only partially explain the long-term GC treatment in PMR.

• Several studies have attempted to identify potential predictors of prolonged treatment with GCs and relapse, but with inconsistent results.

• Additional research is needed to profile patients with a higher risk of long-term GC treatment and relapse and identify more effective steroid-sparing strategies.