Table 1.
Baseline characteristics of propensity score matched cohortsa: stratified by use of TNFi vs conventional synthetic DMARDs
| CS-DMARD (n = 9558) (1644 unique patients) | TNFi (n = 9558) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Characteristic | n | % | n | % | SMD |
| Age, mean (s.d.) | 55.2 (12.1) | 55.2 (12.3) | 0 | ||
| Gender: female, % | 7289 | 76.3 | 7259 | 75.9 | −0.01 |
| Ethnicity: white/Caucasian, % | 9114 | 95.4 | 9118 | 95.4 | 0.00 |
| Index multiple deprivation | |||||
| Quintile 1 | 1282 | 13.4 | 1322 | 13.8 | 0.01 |
| Quintile 2 | 1420 | 14.9 | 1485 | 15.5 | 0.02 |
| Quintile 3 | 1413 | 14.8 | 1640 | 17.2 | 0.07 |
| Quintile 4 | 1544 | 16.2 | 1710 | 17.9 | 0.05 |
| Quintile 5 | 1284 | 13.4 | 1650 | 17.3 | 0.11 |
| Unknown | 2615 | 27.4 | 1751 | 18.3 | −0.22 |
| BMI | 26.8 (5.9) | 27.1 (6.3) | 0.06 | ||
| Smoking? | |||||
| % Current | 2448 | 25.6 | 2259 | 23.6 | −0.05 |
| % Ex | 3272 | 34.2 | 3577 | 37.4 | 0.07 |
| Calendar period of registration | |||||
| Oct 01–Oct 03 | 1481 | 15.5 | 2262 | 23.7 | 0.21 |
| Nov 03–Aug 04 | 2037 | 21.3 | 2037 | 21.3 | 0 |
| Sept 04–Aug 05 | 1823 | 19.1 | 1802 | 18.9 | −0.01 |
| Aug 05–May 07 | 1664 | 17.4 | 1462 | 15.3 | −0.06 |
| May 07–May 16 | 2553 | 26.7 | 1995 | 20.9 | −0.14 |
| Years since diagnosis, median (IQR) | 10.8 (10.7) | 11.0 (8.8) | 0.02 | ||
| DAS 28, mean (s.d.) | 6.47 (1.09) | 6.43 (0.98) | −0.04 | ||
| Overall HAQ score | 1.91 (0.63) | 1.91 (0.62) | −0.01 | ||
| ACR: ever rheumatoid positive, % | 5532 | 57.9 | 6055 | 63.4 | 0.11 |
| ACR deformity of ≥3 joint areas?, % | 7425 | 77.7 | 8118 | 84.9 | 0.19 |
| ACR: erosions on hands/feet, % | 4651 | 48.7 | 5282 | 55.3 | 0.13 |
| ACR: ever had nodules, % | 4034 | 42.2 | 3988 | 41.7 | −0.01 |
| ACR: symmetry, % | 7468 | 78.1 | 7883 | 82.5 | 0.11 |
| ACR: deformity of hand joint, % | 6771 | 70.8 | 7602 | 79.5 | 0.20 |
| ACR: morning stiffness >1 h, % | 8901 | 93.1 | 8966 | 93.8 | 0.03 |
| Non-major prior joint replacementb | 1742 | 18.2 | 1989 | 20.8 | 0.07 |
a
Results shown are for the 10th imputed dataset. Matching was performed using replacement of the cs-DMARD users. 9558 biologic users were each matched to one of the 3229 cs-DMARD users (with replacement). Number of csDMARD patients represented in final matched sample was 1644.
b
Composite variable consisting of: shoulder, elbow, neck or other small joint replacement (e.g. hand).
SMD: standardized mean difference (smaller values indicative of better balance).