Table 2.
Cox proportional hazards regression analysis of all-cause mortality
| Variables | Univariate model | Multivariate model | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| HR | 95% CI | P-value | HR | 95% CI | P-value | |
| Age, per 1 year increasea | 1.02 | 0.99–1.06 | 0.2330 | 1.02 | 0.97–1.06 | 0.4675 |
| Sex, male (vs. female) | 0.66 | 0.36–1.22 | 0.1845 | 0.41 | 0.16–1.05 | 0.0622 |
| Smoking, ever (vs. never)a | 0.63 | 0.34–1.20 | 0.1539 | |||
| Baseline %FVC, per 1% increaseb | 0.97 | 0.95–0.99 | 0.0202 | 0.97 | 0.95–0.99 | 0.0168 |
| Baseline %DLCO, per 1% increaseb, c | 0.99 | 0.97–1.01 | 0.3608 | |||
| P/F at AE, per 10 Torr increasea | 0.96 | 0.92–0.99 | 0.0407 | 0.94 | 0.88–0.99 | 0.0240 |
| C-reactive protein, per 1 mg/dLa | 1.03 | 0.99–1.06 | 0.0912 | |||
| Rheumatoid factor, per 10 U/mL increasea | 1.00 | 0.99–1.01 | 0.6296 | |||
| ACPA, positive (vs. negative)b, d | 1.11 | 0.40–4.65 | 0.8572 | |||
| KL-6, per 100 U/mL increasea | 0.97 | 0.93–1.002 | 0.0720 | |||
| UIP pattern on HRCT (vs. other patterns)b | 1.45 | 0.79–2.76 | 0.2309 | |||
| Infection-triggered AEe | 1.98 | 0.58–5.14 | 0.2453 | |||
| Treatment for RA before AE, yes (vs. no) | ||||||
| Prednisolone ≤ 7.5 mg/day | 3.33 | 0.75–14.8 | 0.1086 | |||
| Methotrexate | 0.73 | 0.37–1.37 | 0.3366 | |||
| Tacrolimus | 1.24 | 0.47–2.75 | 0.6340 | |||
| Bucillamine | 2.08 | 0.84–4.45 | 0.1078 | |||
| Salazosulfapyridine | 1.32 | 0.63–2.55 | 0.4416 | |||
| Treatment for AE (vs. CS monotherapy) | ||||||
| CS + IS | 1.05 | 0.57–1.92 | 0.8826 | |||
| CS + IVCY | 1.36 | 0.68–2.70 | 0.3758 | |||
| CS + CNI | 0.62 | 0.26–1.35 | 0.2349 | |||
%FVC percent predicted forced vital capacity, %DLCO percent predicted diffusing capacity of the lung for carbon monoxide, P/F PaO2/FiO2 ratio, ACPA anti-cyclic citrullinated peptide antibody, KL-6 Krebs von den Lungen-6, UIP usual interstitial pneumonia, HRCT high-resolution computed tomography, RA rheumatoid arthritis, AE acute exacerbation, CS corticosteroids, IS immunosuppressant, IVCY intravenous cyclophosphamide, CNI calcineurin inhibitor, HR hazard ratio, CI confidence interval
aAt AE onset
bWithin 12 months before AE
cn = 34
dn = 46
eDue to an apparent infection with an identifiable cause that occurred within 1 month before AE onset