Table 1.
Characteristics of the study groups
| Characteristics | JIA (N = 42) |
Controls (N = 30) |
|---|---|---|
| Age at study visit, median years (IQR) | 13.9 (11.3–15.1) | 14.3 (12.2–16.4) |
| Sex, females, n (%) | 29 (69.0) | 22 (73.3) |
| Iso-BMI > 25a, n (%) | 10 (23.8) | 6 (20.0) |
| Parental educationb, high level, n (%) | 19 (50.0) | 17 (65.4) |
| CRP ≥ 5 mg/Lc, n (%) | 3 (7.1) | 3 (10.3) |
| ESR > 10 mm/hd, n (%) | 16 (38.1) | 4 (13.8) |
| Salivary flow ratee, mL/min, mean (SD) | 0.4 (± 0.5) | 0.6 (± 0.6) |
JIA Juvenile idiopathic arthritis, IQR Interquartile range, CRP C-reactive protein in milligram per liter plasma or serum, SD standard deviation, ESR Erythrocyte sedimentation rate measured in millimeter per hour
aiso-BMI = body mass index adjusted for age and sex, corresponding to adult BMI groups according to The International Obesity Task Force for overweight/obesity: iso-BMI ≥ 25 kg/m2
bParental education level, mother and father, the parent with the highest level determined the grouping: Low = primary and high school (≤ 13 years of education), High = university-level education
cCRP ≥ 5 indicates active inflammation, CRP missing in 1 in the control group
dESR > 10 mm/h indicates active inflammation, ESR missing in n = 1 in the control group
eUnstimulated salivation: Saliva collected by drooling and spitting into a collection tube. Participants were instructed not to eat, drink, brush their teeth, or take any other than prescribed medication before collecting saliva, n = 4 saliva samples from the JIA group are missing