Table 1.
Characteristics of patients included in the study.
| Characteristics | pSS | RA | SLE | p |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Patients (n) | 42 | 28 | 25 | NA |
| Female gender (%) | 40 (95.2%) | 24 (85.7%) | 24 (96%) | 0.35 |
| Median age (year; IQR) | 62.5 (54.7;71.2) | 60.5 (53; 73.5) | 40 (31.5; 50.5) | < 0.01 |
| Smoking patients (%) | 4 (8.3%) | 3 (10.3%) | 5 (18.5%) | 0.45 |
| Mean BMI (kg/m2 ± SD) | 27.6 ± 7.5 | 26.2 ± 5.7 | 25.4 ± 5.8 | 0.52 |
| Cardiovascular risk factor | ||||
| No cardiovascular risk factor | 22 (52.4%) | 9 (32.1%) | 11 (44%) | 0.25 |
| 1 or 2 cardiovascular risk factors | 17 (40.5%) | 14 (50%) | 12 (48%) | 0.70 |
| 3 or 4 cardiovascular risk factors | 3 (7.1%) | 5 (17.9%) | 2 (8%) | 0.39 |
| SSa and/or SSb positivity (%) | 16 (38.1%) | 0 (0%) | 8 (32%) | < 0.01 |
| Mean disease duration (year ± SD) | 9.2 ± 8.6 | 15.8 ± 9.3 | 12.1 ± 9.7 | 0.01 |
| Disease status | ||||
| Low disease activity | 32 (76.2%) | 14 (58.3%) | 19 (76%) | 0.25 |
| Moderate disease activity | 6 (14.3%) | 8 (33.3%) | 6 (24%) | 0.26 |
| High disease activity | 4 (9.5%) | 2 (8.3%) | 0 | 0.36 |
| Medications | ||||
| No treatment (%) | 9 (27.3%) | 2 (7.7%) | 8 (32%) | 0.08 |
| Steroids (%) | 8 (24.2%) | 7 (26.9%) | 4 (16%) | 0.62 |
| All synthetic DMARDs (%) | 21 (63.6%) | 15 (57.7%) | 22 (88%) | 0.04 |
| Methotrexate (%) | 6 (18.2%) | 12 (46.2%) | 3 (12%) | 0.01 |
| Sulfasalazine (%) | 3 (9.1%) | 1 (3.8%) | 0 | 0.38 |
| Leflunomide (%) | 2 (6.1%) | 1 (3.8%) | 0 | 0.77 |
| Hydroxychloroquine (%) | 9 (27.3%) | 1 (3.8%) | 9 (36%) | 0.02 |
| Ciclosporin (%) | 1 (3%) | 0 | 0 | > 0.99 |
| Mycophenolate (%) | 0 | 0 | 6 (24%) | 0.01 |
| Azathioprine (%) | 0 | 0 | 3 (12%) | 0.02 |
| Tacrolimus (%) | 0 | 0 | 1 (4%) | 0.30 |
| All biologic DMARDs (%) | 3 (9.1%) | 19 (73.1%) | 1 (4%) | < 0.01 |
| Rituximab (%) | 3 (9.1%) | 3 (11.5%) | 1 (4%) | 0.70 |
| TNF inhibitors (%) | 0 | 6 (23.1%) | 0 | 0.01 |
| Tocilizumab (%) | 0 | 7 (27%) | 0 | 0.01 |
| Abatacept (%) | 0 | 3 (11.5%) | 0 | 0.05 |
Representation of the three autoimmune diseases groups: pSS, RA, and SLE. Comparisons between groups were done using either a Kruskall-Wallis test or a Chi-2 test (or a Fisher’s exact test when conditions necessary for Chi-2 were not met). Results from these tests are in column “p”.
pSS, primary Sjogren syndrome; RA, rheumatoid arthritis; SLE, systemic lupus erythematosus; IQR, interquartile range (Q1–Q3); DMARDs, Disease Modifying Anti-Rheumatic Drugs; NA, Not Applicable.