Table 1.
Clinical characteristics of the patients in this study and of those in the report by Liu and colleagues [7]
| Variable | This study | Data from [7] | P value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Age in years, mean ± SD | 54.2 ± 13.1 | 57 ± 13.5 | 0.06 |
| Age in years at diagnosis, mean ± SD | 46.2 ± 13.5 | 47 ± 15 | 0.3 |
| Women, percentage | 84.8 | 75 | 0.06 |
| Disease duration in years, mean ± SD | 7.8 ± 6.6 | 8 ± 8 | 0.4 |
| Current smokers, percentagea | 9.1 | 15 | 0.3 |
| Ever smokers, percentagea | 25.0 | ||
| Rheumatoid factor-positive, percentage | 68.9 | 83.8 | 0.01 |
| Anti-CCP-positive, percentagea | 86.3 | 61.9 | 0.0001 |
| Shared epitope-positive, percentagea | 58.3 | ||
| Antinuclear antibody-positive, percentagea | 29.8 | ||
| HAQ at baseline, mean ± SD | 1.4 ± 0.7 | 1.1 ± 0.6 | 0.0005 |
| DAS28 at baseline, mean ± SD | 5.6 ± 1.2 | 5.2 ± 0.8 | 0.002 |
| DAS28 ≥ 5.1, percentage | 70.2 | ||
| 3.2 ≤ DAS28 > 5.1, percentage | 26.5 | ||
| DAS28 at 12 to 16 weeks, mean ± SD | 3.6 ± 1.4 | 3.7 ± 1.3 | 0.2 |
| DAS28 at 6 months, mean ± SD | 3.5 ± 1.4 | ||
| Good responders at 12 to 16 weeks, percentage | 40.4 | 34.8 | 0.6 |
| Non-responders at 12 to 16 weeks, percentage | 22.5 | 25.8 | 0.6 |
| Good responders at 6 months, percentage | 43.7 | ||
| Non-responders at 6 months, percentage | 21.8 | ||
| Anti-tumor necrosis factor drug | |||
| Infliximab, number | 101 | 32 | 0.01 |
| Etanercept, number | 35 | 39 | 0.02 |
| Adalimumab, number | 15 | 18 | 0.05 |
aData were available for 102 patients for anti-cyclic citrullinated peptide (CCP) antibodies, antinuclear antibody, and shared epitope and for 88 patients for smoking habits. DAS28, disease activity score using 28 joint counts; HAQ, health assessment questionnaire; SD, standard deviation.