Table 3.
Marital status, sexual behavior, and venereal diseases and risk of rheumatoid arthritis, Denmark 1998 to 2003
| Women | Men | Both genders | |||
| Number of patients/controls | ORa (95% CI) | Number of patients/controls | ORa (95% CI) | ORa (95% CI) | |
| Marital status | |||||
| Married or cohabiting with partner | 267/352 | 1 (ref) | 116/229 | 1 (ref) | 1 (ref) |
| Widowed | 12/20 | 0.65 (0.29 to 1.45) | 4/4 | 2.04 (0.44 to 9.51) | 0.91 (0.46 to 1.81) |
| Divorced or separated | 40/58 | 0.84 (0.54 to 1.33) | 10/41 | 0.43 (0.20 to 0.92) | 0.73 (0.50 to 1.06) |
| Unmarried | 47/48 | 1.52 (0.93 to 2.49) | 19/17 | 2.55 (1.16 to 5.61) | 1.71 (1.14 to 2.58) |
| Test for homogeneity (p) | 0.19 | 0.007 | 0.02 | ||
| Lifetime number of sexual partners of opposite sex | |||||
| 0 to 1 | 70/85 | 1 (ref) | 16/44 | 1 (ref) | 1 (ref) |
| 2 to 5 | 160/184 | 1.13 (0.76 to 1.68) | 51/79 | 1.74 (0.84 to 3.59) | 1.26 (0.90 to 1.77) |
| 6 to 10 | 79/124 | 0.87 (0.56 to 1.37) | 36/58 | 1.62 (0.75 to 3.51) | 1.04 (0.71 to 1.51) |
| 11 to 20 | 35/63 | 0.69 (0.39 to 1.22) | 21/48 | 1.26 (0.54 to 2.95) | 0.84 (0.53 to 1.31) |
| 21 to 30 | 8/9 | 1.15 (0.40 to 3.29) | 6/32 | 0.48 (0.16 to 1.48) | 0.65 (0.32 to 1.30) |
| >30 | 8/5 | 2.10 (0.62 to 7.16) | 10/20 | 1.16 (0.38 to 3.55) | 1.29 (0.63 to 2.64) |
| Trend test (p) | 0.95 | 0.21 | 0.44 | ||
| Age at first sexual intercourse | |||||
| ≤14 years | 24/36 | 0.98 (0.54 to 1.75) | 11/27 | 0.69 (0.30 to 1.57) | 0.88 (0.55 to 1.40) |
| 15 to 17 years | 170/228 | 1 (ref) | 59/104 | 1 (ref) | 1 (ref) |
| 18 to 20 years | 136/164 | 1.06 (0.77 to 1.46) | 51/113 | 0.83 (0.51 to 1.37) | 0.99 (0.76 to 1.29) |
| >20 years | 29/42 | 0.80 (0.46 to 1.39) | 26/44 | 1.11 (0.59 to 2.09) | 0.95 (0.64 to 1.43) |
| Trend test (p) | 0.62 | 0.53 | 0.98 | ||
| Lifetime number of anal-intercourse partners of opposite sex | |||||
| 0 | 273/339 | 1 (ref) | 111/230 | 1 (ref) | 1 (ref) |
| 1 | 69/93 | 0.99 (0.68 to 1.45) | 20/34 | 1.28 (0.67 to 2.42) | 1.06 (0.77 to 1.46) |
| ≥2 | 17/37 | 0.65 (0.34 to 1.22) | 14/25 | 0.99 (0.45 to 2.20) | 0.82 (0.51 to 1.32) |
| Trend test (p) | 0.30 | 0.76 | 0.63 | ||
| Venereal diseaseb | |||||
| Never | 292/362 | 1 (ref) | 117/223 | 1 (ref) | 1 (ref) |
| Ever | 67/102 | 0.85 (0.59 to 1.22) | 30/57 | 1.02 (0.60 to 1.73) | 0.90 (0.67 to 1.21) |
| Test for homogeneity (p) | 0.38 | 0.95 | 0.48 | ||
Due to missing values for some individuals, numbers do not always add up to 366 female and 149 male patients with RA and 478 female and 291 male controls. aAdjusted for birth year, year or pseudo-year of RA diagnosis, and (when combined) gender. bOne or more of the following: chlamydia, herpes, acuminate condylomas, gonorrhea, or syphilis. CI, confidence interval; OR, odds ratio; ref, reference.