According to new findings regarding the pathogenesis of inflammatory rheumatic diseases and the discoveries in the field of basic medical sciences, the paradigm for treating inflammatory rheumatic diseases changed significantly over time. Specifically, the therapeutic goal shifted from nonselective immunosuppression, attained by administration of corticosteroids, to the impact on executive (efferent) functions of immune cells, and highly specific cytokine blockade. The understading of mechanisms of cytokine-induced changes of cell phenotype is now broader than ever, which is crucial for developing and applying new therapeutic strategies, such as interfering with the signalling pathway from the cytokine receptor to the cell nucleus. The JAK/STAT signalling pathway is an integral part of fundamental mechanisms of homeostasis, since it enables effective intercellular communication. Primary disruption of JAKs and STATs results in numerous clinical entities, but excessive or inadequate JAK/STAT pathway function can be observed as a secondary phenomenon in various other infectious, inflammatory, and malignant diseases. Some examples of diseases where the imbalance of pro- and antiinflammatory cytokines plays a key role in initiation, progression and chronification of the inflammatory process are rheumatoid arthritis, psoriatic arthritis and systemic lupus erythematosus. Janus kinase inhibitors block the effects of cytokines on the target cell, acting intracellularly. In Croatia, Janus kinase inhibitors currently approved for the treatment of inflammatory rheumatic diseases are tofacitinib and baricitinib. Numerous other JAK inhibitors are at the moment in phases 2 and 3 of clinical research. Therefore, the expansion of available therapeutic approaches to the treatment of inflammatory rheumatic diseases is expected and imminent. Having in mind multiple evidences on the important role of cytokines in the pathogenesis of inflammatory rheumatic diseases, with the emphasis on the success of anticytokine therapy, the use of Janus kinase inhibitors in the treatment of such disorders is certainly going to amplify.