Table 1.

Characteristics of the studies selected for the meta-analysis on the proportion of patients with polymyalgia rheumatica still on glucocorticoids at different time points

Author, year [ref]	Assessment time (yrs)	Patients (N)	Type of study	Recruitment period	Classification of PMR	PDN start dose(mg/day)
Aoki A, 2020 [15]	2	64	R	2011–2020	ACR/EULAR and Bird’s criteria	M 13.5
Mørk C, 2020 [16]	1, 2	174, 173	R/P	2012–2017	Physician’s diagn	Me 15
Marsman DE, 2020 [17]	1, 2	441, 357	R	2008–2018	Physician’s diagn	Me 15
Muller S, 2019 [18]	1, 2	493, 437	P	2012–2014	Physician’s diagn	M 15.6
van Sleen Y, 2019 [19]	2	19	P	2010–2018	Physician’s diagn	Me 15
Giollo A, 2019 [20]	2	205	P	na– > 2017	ACR/EULAR	NA
Albrecht K, 2018 [21]	1, 2	526, 315	P	2007–2014	Physician’s diagn	Me 7.5
Shbeeb I, 2018 [22]	1, 2, 5	334, 302, 201	R	200–2014	ACR/EULAR	M 16.9
Miceli MC, 2017 [23]	1	66	P	na	ACR/EULAR	0.2 mg/kg/day
Mackie SL, 2015 [24]	1	21	R	na	Bird’s	15 per protocol
Mazzantini M, 2012 [4]	2	222	R	na – > 2009	Bird’s	M 15
Mackie SL, 2010 [25]	5	164	R	1989–2000	Bird’s	29% > 15 mg/day
Cimmino M, 2008 [26]	5	57	Obs.ext. of RCT	1998–1999	Chuang’s	NA
Kremers H, 2007 [27]	5	364	R	1970–1999	Physician’s diagn	Me 15
Myklebust G, 2001 [28]	1, 2	217, 217	P	1987–1994	Bird’s criteria	Me 15
Weyand CM, 1999 [29]	1	27	P	1993–1996	Descriptive	20 per protocol
Ayoub WT, 1985 [30]	1, 2	75, 75	R	1975–1982	Descriptive	M 22.8

Yrs, years; N, number; P, prospective; R, retrospective; NA, data not available; Rheum, rheumatology; Diagn, diagnosis; ACR, American College of Rheumatology; EULAR, European League Against Rheumatisms; M, mean; Me, median