Table 2.
Baseline characteristics and outcomes of patients with IgG4-RD, grouped according to treatment
| GC monotherapy (n = 77) | Combination therapy comprising GC and IM (n = 138) | p value | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sex (male:female) | 2.08:1 | 2.29:1 | 0.761 |
| Age (years) | 54 (45, 61) | 54 (48, 62) | 0.723 |
| Disease duration (months) | 12 (4, 24) | 12 (4, 36) | 0.649 |
| IgG4-RD RI | 13 (10, 18) | 15 (10, 18) | 0.685 |
| Allergy history | 42 (54.5%) | 73 (53.7%) | 1 |
| Number of organs involved | 0.369 | ||
| 1 ~ 2 | 32 (41.6%) | 46 (33.3%) | |
| 3 ~ 4 | 35 (45.5%) | 66 (47.8%) | |
| ≥ 5 | 10 (13.0%) | 26 (18.8%) | |
| Organ involvement | |||
| Mikulicz’s disease | 51 (66.2%) | 87 (63.0%) | 0.659 |
| Dacryoadenitis | 35 (45.5%) | 60 (43.5%) | 0.886 |
| Sialoadenitis | 46 (59.7%) | 78 (56.5%) | 0.668 |
| Autoimmune pancreatitis | 34 (44.2%) | 57 (41.3%) | 0.774 |
| Sclerosing cholangitis | 22 (28.6%) | 36 (26.1%) | 0.749 |
| Retroperitoneal fibrosis | 10 (13.0%) | 40 (29.0%) | 0.007 |
| Lung disease | 17 (22.1%) | 45 (32.6%) | 0.118 |
| Sinusitis | 25 (32.5%) | 37 (26.8%) | 0.433 |
| Lymphadenopathy | 53 (68.8%) | 86 (62.3%) | 0.374 |
| Laboratory tests at baseline | |||
| Eosinophils (%) | 3.3 (1.7, 6.2) | 3.2 (1.4, 6.4) | 0.773 |
| ESR (mm/h) | 25 (9, 53) | 25 (10, 65) | 0.790 |
| CRP (mg/L) | 2.06 (0.79, 11.24) | 4.01 (1.29, 10.32) | 0.297 |
| IgG (g/L) | 18.83 (14.24, 25.54) | 18.9 (15.2, 23.68) | 0.747 |
| IgG4 (mg/L) | 10,200 (3590, 18,800) | 8955 (3480, 18,075) | 0.554 |
| IgE (kU/L) | 510 (178, 881) | 256 (119, 728) | 0.118 |
| Initial GC dose | 40 (35, 50) | 40 (40,50) | 0.567 |
| Outcomes at month 6 | |||
| RI reductiona <50% | 2 (2.6%) | 1 (0.7%) | 0.292 |
| Relapse | 14 (18.2%) | 9 (6.5%) | 0.011 |
| Failure of GC tapering | 8 (10.4%) | 9 (6.5%) | 0.429 |
| Failure of remission induction | 16 (20.8%) | 10 (7.2%) | 0.008 |
All the continuous non-normally distributed data were presented as median (first quartile, third quartile)
IgG4-RD IgG4-related disease, RI responder index, ESR erythrocyte sedimentation rate, CRP hyper-sensitivity C-reactive protein, GC glucocorticoid, IM immunosuppressive agents
aHere we considered the maximum reduction during follow up, so that re-elevation due to relapse was not taken into account