Remission could be induced and sustained in patients with early inflammatory arthritis (defined as synovitis of 12 weeks duration in at least two joints; n = 90) following 1 year of treatment with infliximab and methotrexate (MTX) in a randomized placebo-controlled trial. Patients receiving infliximab plus MTX were more likely to achieve remission at 54 weeks than patients receiving MTX alone or those receiving placebo (34% achieved remission on infliximab plus MTX versus 0% on placebo; P < 0.05). Three-quarters of patients who achieved remission on infliximab plus MTX maintained remission throughout the following year with no therapy.