Table 4. Comparison of bone turnover markers and bone mineral density between patients receiving a daily glucocorticoid dose of ≥5 mg versus those receiving a daily glucocorticoid dose of <5 mg after tocilizumab treatment.
| Before Tocilizumab | After Tocilizumab | p value | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Osteocalcin (ng/ml) | |||
| GC<5mg | 23.40 ± 12.23 | 18.81 ± 5.74 | 0.317 |
| GC≥5mg | 15.24 ± 7.02 | 15.50 ± 7.42 | 0.893 |
| P1NP (ng/ml) | |||
| GC<5mg | 44.41 ± 19.08 | 39.93 ± 18.75 | 0.445 |
| GC≥5mg | 52.34 ± 21.01 | 64.28 ± 42.22 | 0.308 |
| CTX (ng/ml) | |||
| GC<5mg | 0.30 ± 0.20 | 0.22 ± 0.12 | 0.114 |
| GC≥5mg | 0.32 ± 0.21 | 0.28 ± 0.18 | 0.142 |
| Lumbar spine BMD (g/cm2) | |||
| GC<5mg | 1.01 ± 0.21 | 1.00 ± 0.20 | 0.799 |
| GC≥5mg | 0.93 ± 0.63 | 1.44 ± 3.45 | 0.212 |
| Femoral neck, R't BMD (g/cm2) | |||
| GC<5mg | 0.76 ± 0.12 | 0.75 ± 0.11 | 0.310 |
| GC≥5mg | 0.68 ± 0.56 | 0.74 ± 0.14 | 0.034* |
| Femoral neck, L't BMD (g/cm2) | |||
| GC<5mg | 0.75 ± 0.11 | 0.76 ± 0.12 | 0.917 |
| GC≥5mg | 0.68 ± 0.59 | 0.71 ± 0.24 | 0.004** |
Wilcoxon signed rank.
*p < 0.05,
**p < 0.01
BMD: bone mineral density; CTX: C-terminal cross-linking telopeptide of type I collagen; GC: glucocorticoid; P1NP: N-terminal propeptide of type I collagen; RA: rheumatoid arthritis.