Medications used in CTD
| Medication | Mechanism of action |
| Corticosteroids | |
| Prednisolone | Anti-inflammatory |
| Methylprednisolone | Anti-inflammatory |
| DMARDs | |
| Methotrexate | Dihydrofolate reductase inhibitor |
| Hydroxchloroquine | Lysosomal membrane stablisation, reduces IL-1 and TNF synthesis |
| Mycophenolate mofetil | Restricts T- and B-cell proliferation, acts on purine synthesising enzyme |
| Azathioprine | Metabolised to 6-mercaptopurine |
| Biologic therapy | |
| Etanercept | Soluble TNF-α receptor |
| Adalimumab | Monoclonal antibody to TNF-α |
| Infliximab | Monoclonal antibody to TNF-α |
| Canakinumab | Monoclonal antibody to IL-1 |
| Rituximab | Monoclonal antibody to CD20 |
| Abatacept | CTLA-4 fusion protein |
| Cytotoxic agent | |
| Cyclophosphamide | Acts on all phases of cell cycle; acts on both T- and B-cells |
DMARDs: disease modifying anti-rheumatic drugs; CTLA-4: cytotoxic T-lymphocytes antigen 4; CD: cluster of differentiation.