Table 1.
Characteristics of the 1,674 VARA participants at enrollment*
| Age, mean ± SD years | 63.5 ± 11.1 |
| Male sex | 1,515 (91) |
| Race | |
| White | 1,206 (72) |
| African American | 275 (16) |
| Current smoker | 441 (27) |
| Baseline BMI, mean ± SD kg/m2 | 28.4 ± 5.5 |
| Maximum BMI, mean ± SD kg/m2 | 33.3 ± 12.7 |
| Baseline BMI category | |
| <20 kg/m2 | 50 (3) |
| 20–25 kg/m2 | 415 (25) |
| >25–30 kg/m2 | 635 (38) |
| >30 kg/m2 | 575 (34) |
| Maximum BMI category | |
| <20 kg/m2 | 7 (0.4) |
| 20–25 kg/m2 | 133 (8) |
| >25–30 kg/m2 | 571 (34) |
| >30 kg/m2 | 964 (58) |
| Disease specific | |
| Anti-CCP antibody positive† | 1,191 (79) |
| Disease duration, median (IQR) years | 7.4 (1.6–16.8) |
| DAS28-ESR, mean ± SD | 4.06 ± 1.6 |
| CRP, median (IQR) mg/dl | 0.8 (0.4–1.9) |
| ESR, median (IQR) mm/hour | 22 (10–38) |
| MD-HAQ score, mean ± SD | 0.93 ± 0.60 |
| Current therapy | |
| Prednisone | 646 (39) |
| Methotrexate | 846 (51) |
| TNF inhibitor | 336 (20) |
| Common comorbidities | |
| Diabetes | 437 (26) |
| Chronic kidney disease | 118 (7) |
| Lung disease | 538 (32) |
| Cardiovascular disease | 639 (38) |
| Depression | 523 (31) |
| Any malignancy | 863 (52) |
| Hypertension | 1,167 (70) |
*
Except where indicated otherwise, values are the number (%). VARA = Veterans Affairs Rheumatoid Arthritis Registry; BMI = body mass index; anti-CCP = anti–cyclic citrullinated peptide; IQR = interquartile range; DAS28-ESR = Disease Activity Score in 28 joints using the erythrocyte sedimentation rate; CRP = C-reactive protein; MD-HAQ = Multidimensional Health Assessment Questionnaire; TNF = tumor necrosis factor.
†
A total of 1,517 patients were assessed.