scholarly journals POS0495 LARGE JOINT DISEASE IN RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS AND THE ROLE OF RHEUMATOID FACTOR. RESULTS FROM THE EARLY RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS STUDY

2021 ◽  
Vol 80 (Suppl 1) ◽  
pp. 480-480
Author(s):  
S. S. Zhao ◽  
E. Nikiphorou ◽  
A. Young ◽  
P. Kiely

Background:Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is classically described as a symmetric small joint polyarthritis with additional involvement of large joints. There is a paucity of information concerning the time course of damage in large joints, such as shoulder, elbow, hip, knee and ankle, from early to established RA, or of the influence of Rheumatoid Factor (RF) status. There is a historic perception that patients who do not have RF follow a milder less destructive course, which might promote less aggressive treatment strategies in RF-negative patients. The historic nature of the Ealy Rheumatoid Arthritis Study (ERAS) provides a unique opportunity to study RA in the context of less aggressive treatment strategies.Objectives:To examine the progression of large joint involvement from early to established RA in terms of range of movement (ROM) and time to joint surgery, according to the presence of RF.Methods:ERAS was a multi-centre inception cohort of newly diagnosed RA patients (<2 years disease duration, csDMARD naive), recruited from 1985-2001 with yearly follow-up for up to 25 (median 10) years. First line treatment was csDMARD monotherapy with/without steroids, favouring sulphasalazine for the majority. Outcome data was recorded at baseline, at 12 months and then once yearly. Patients were deemed RF negative if all repeated assessments were negative. ROM of individual shoulder, elbow, wrist, hip, knee, ankle and hindfeet joints was collected at 3, 5, 9 and 12-15 years. The rate of progression from normal to any loss of ROM, from years 3 to 14 was modelled using GEE, adjusting for confounders. Radiographs of wrists taken at years 0, 1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 9 were scored according to the Larsen method. Change in the Larsen wrist damage score was modelled using GEE as a continuous variable, while the erosion score was dichotomised into present/absent. Surgical procedure data were obtained by linking to Hospital Episodes Statistics and the National Joint Registry. Time to joint surgery was analysed using multivariable Cox models.Results:A total of 1458 patients from the ERAS cohort were included (66% female, mean age 55 years) and 74% were RF-positive. The prevalence of any loss of ROM, from year 3 through to 14 was highest in the wrist followed by ankle, knee, elbow and hip. The proportion of patients at year 9 with greater than 25% loss of ROM was: wrist 30%, ankle 12%, elbow 7%, knee 7% and hip 5%. Odds of loss of ROM increased over time in all joint regions, at around 7 to 13% per year from year 3 to 14. There was no significant difference between RF-positive and RF-negative patients (see Figure 1). Larsen erosion and damage scores at the wrists progressed in all patients; annual odds of developing any erosions were higher in RF-positives OR 1.28 (95%CI 1.24-1.32) than RF-negatives OR 1.17 (95%CI 1.09-1.26), p 0.013. Time to surgery was similar according to RF-status for the wrist and ankle, but RF-positive cases had a lower hazard of surgery at the elbow (HR 0.37, 0.15-0.90), hip (HR 0.69, 0.48-0.99) and after 10 years at the knee (HR 0.41, 0.25-0.68). Adjustment of the models for Lawrence assessed osteoarthritis of hand and feet radiographs did not influence these results.Figure 1.Odds of progression to any loss of ROM (from no loss of ROM) per year in the overall population and stratified by RF status.Conclusion:Large joints become progressively involved in RA, most frequently affecting the wrist followed by ankle, which is overlooked in some composite disease activity indices. We confirm a higher burden of erosions and damage at the wrists in RF-positive patients, but have not found RF-negative patients to have a better prognosis over time with respect to involvement of other large joints. In contrast RF-negative patients had more joint surgery at the elbow, hip, and knee after 10 years. There is no justification to adopt a less aggressive treatment strategy for RF-negative RA. High vigilance and treat-to-target approaches should be followed irrespective of RF status.Disclosure of Interests:None declared

Author(s):  
Sizheng Steven Zhao ◽  
Elena Nikiphorou ◽  
Adam Young ◽  
Patrick D. W. Kiely

AbstractThis study aimed to examine the progression of large joint involvement from early to established RA in terms of range of movement (ROM) and time to joint surgery, according to the presence of rheumatoid factor (RF). We used a historical longitudinal cohort of early RA patients. Patients were deemed RF negative if all repeated assessments were negative. The rate of progression from normal to any loss of range of movement (ROM) from years 3 to 14 were modelled using generalized estimating equations, for elbows, wrists, hips, knees and ankle, adjusting for confounders. Time to joint surgery was analysed using multivariable Cox models. A total of 1458 patients were included (66% female, mean age 55 years) and 74% were RF-positive. The prevalence of any loss of ROM, from year 3 through to 14 was highest in the wrist followed by ankle, knee, elbow and hip. Odds of loss of ROM increased over time in all joint regions assessed, at around 7–13% per year from year 3 to 14. Time to surgery was similar according to RF-status for the wrist and ankle, but RF-positive cases had a lower hazard of surgery at the elbow (HR 0.37, 0.15–0.90), hip (HR 0.69, 0.48–0.99) and after 10 years at the knee (HR 0.41, 0.25–0.68). Large joints become progressively involved in RA, most frequently affecting the wrist followed by ankle, which is overlooked in composite disease activity indices. RF-negative and positive cases progressed similarly. Treat-to-target approaches should be followed irrespective of RF status.


Author(s):  
Sahar A. Ahmed ◽  
Enas M. Darwish ◽  
Walaa A. Attya ◽  
Mai Samir ◽  
Mennatallah Elsayed ◽  
...  

Background: Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a common progressive chronic inflammatory autoimmune disease which affects mostly small joints, causing pain, swelling, deformity, and disability. Although progress has been made in exploring RA nature, still there is a lot to know about the disease pathogenesis, diagnosis, and treatment. Aim of the Work: To investigate the role of serum anti-carbamylated protein antibodies and 14-3-3η in the diagnosis of RA compared to rheumatoid factor (RF), anti-CCP antibodies, and highfrequency musculoskeletal ultrasound used to assess the disease activity and joint damage. Methods: Serum anti-carbamylated protein antibodies and 14-3-3η were measured using ELISA in 61 RA patients and 26 normal controls. RA Disease Activity Score (DAS 28), X-ray and musculoskeletal ultrasound (hands and feet), carotid ultrasound (Intima-Media Thickness IMT) were used in assessing the RA disease. Results: Anti-carbamylated protein antibodies were significantly elevated in RA patients 4.5 (4.1- 8.9 U⁄ml) compared to the control 3.2(1.9- 4.3 U⁄ml) (p< 0.001) but 14-3-3η showed no significant difference. There was a significant positive correlation between anti-carbamylated protein antibodies, 14-3-3η levels and disease activity score assessed by DAS 28, increased IMT measured by carotid duplex, total synovitis and total erosion score were assessed by musculoskeletal ultrasound. There was no correlation between RF and anti-CCP antibodies. Anti-carbamylated protein antibodies were found to have 66.7% sensitivity and 85.2% specificity in RA diagnosis, while 14- 3-3η had 51.9% sensitivity and 72.1% specificity. Conclusion: Anti-carbamylated protein antibodies and 14-3-3η have a high sensitivity and specificity in RA diagnosis and had a correlation with the disease activity and joint damage.


2013 ◽  
Vol 40 (9) ◽  
pp. 1505-1512 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sandhya C. Nair ◽  
Johannes W.J. Bijlsma ◽  
Jacobien H. van der Werf ◽  
Maaike J. van der Veen ◽  
Suzanne P. Linn-Rasker ◽  
...  

Objective.To explore the relationship between rheumatoid arthritis (RA) disease activity and functional disability over time, considering indirect (predictive) and direct (concurrent) associations as well as the influence of radiographic joint damage and treatment strategy.Methods.Functional disability [Health Assessment Questionnaire (HAQ)], disease activity [28-joint Disease Activity Score (DAS28)], and radiographic joint damage [Sharp/van der Heijde score (SHS)] were measured in 4 consecutive randomized controlled trials with increasingly intensive (tight control) treatment strategies. Average followup time for the 3 cohorts was 97, 53, and 50 months, respectively. Next to current DAS28, the previous DAS28 was used to study the predictive effect of a change in DAS28 on progression of functional disability (HAQ). Finally, it was investigated whether SHS mediated the predictive effect of DAS28.Results.In patients treated with intensive treatment strategies, the progression of HAQ over time was statistically significantly less (p < 0.0001). The predictive influence of DAS28 on HAQ progression increased over the duration of the disease. SHS was not found to influence HAQ progression and did not mediate the predictive effect of DAS28. In the less intensively treated patients, the direct effect of disease activity decreased with disease duration, and contrarily, SHS did influence HAQ progression, but was not found to (fully) mediate the predictive effect of DAS28.Conclusion.In patients with RA treated with modern treatment strategies, there is less functional decline over time. Further, disease activity does predict functional decline but joint damage does not. This might indicate that factors associated with cumulative disease activity but not visible on radiographs can influence functional decline in patients with RA. This further underlines the importance of disease activity as a treatment target in early RA and in established RA.


2005 ◽  
Vol 72 (3) ◽  
pp. 241-247 ◽  
Author(s):  
Philippe Zangger ◽  
Edward C. Keystone ◽  
Earl R. Bogoch

2019 ◽  
Vol 46 (7) ◽  
pp. 670-675 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kristina Forslind ◽  
Kerstin Eberhardt ◽  
Björn Svensson

Objective.The aim of this study was to examine the occurrence of repair in a cohort of conventionally treated patients with early rheumatoid arthritis over 8 years.Methods.There were 395 patients included in the BARFOT study having radiographs of hands and feet at inclusion, and at 1, 2, 5, and 8 years, which were chronologically scored for erosions by the Sharp/van der Heijde method. An erosion with repair was defined as an erosion that has become partially or totally filled, with or without sclerosis.Results.Erosions with repair were observed in 64 patients (16%) at 1 year, 113 (29%) at 2 years, 142 (36%) at 5 years, and 200 (51%) at 8 years. At the 1-year visit, 13% of the patients with at least 1 new erosion showed repair versus 3% of the patients with no new erosions (p = 0.001). At 2, 5, and 8 years the corresponding figures were 22% and 6%, 28% and 8%, and 39% and 11%, respectively (all p = 0.001). The sum of all repaired erosions correlated strongly with the sum of all erosions and with the sum of all erosion scores (ρ = 0.79 and 0.77). Presence of rheumatoid factor (RF) and anticyclic citrullinated peptide antibodies (anti-CCP) was significantly associated with both new erosions and repair.Conclusion.Repair was more common than previously described. The frequency of repair increased over time and was associated with the number of erosions. RF- and anti-CCP–positivity, patient age, and presence of erosions at baseline were independent predictors of repair.


Rheumatology ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Janne Heuvelmans ◽  
Nathan den Broeder ◽  
Geke A H van den Elsen ◽  
Alfons A den Broeder ◽  
Bart J F van den Bemt

Abstract Objectives The aim of this study was to compare the effectiveness and tolerability between oral methotrexate (MTX) and subcutaneous MTX in a large group of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients in a real-life setting. Methods In this retrospective cohort study, adult patients with clinical diagnosis of RA who started MTX treatment (monotherapy or combined with hydroxychloroquine), either started with oral or subcutaneous MTX. The primary outcome was superiority testing of between group difference in change in DAS28CRP between baseline and 3–6 months, and subsequent non inferiority testing (NI margin 0.6) analyses in case of non-superiority. Secondary outcomes included MTX dose, side effects, laboratory abnormalities, and use of comedication. Results 640 RA patients were included: 259 started with oral MTX and 381 with subcutaneous. There was no significant difference in ΔDAS28CRP, after adjusting for confounding, 0.13 (95%-CI: -0.14, 0.40), and oral MTX strategy was non inferior to subcutaneous. The mean MTX dose was slightly lower for the oral strategy (18.0 SD6.9 vs 19.9 SD8.2, p= 0.002), which was accompanied by a lower cumulative incidence of adverse events (41% vs 52%, p= 0.005). No differences were seen in use of other comedication. Conclusions Starting with oral MTX in RA in a real-life setting is non inferior to a subcutaneous MTX treatment with regard to disease activity control, at least when used in dosages up to 25 mg and on a background of HCQ cotreatment and a treat-to-target approach. In addition, tolerability was better. This supports the strategy of starting with oral MTX.


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