Baseline characteristics.
| Characteristics | Biomarkers, n = 125 | No Biomarkers, n = 383 | p |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sex, n (%) female | 94 (75.2) | 249 (65.0) | 0.037 |
| Age, mean (SD) | 53 (14) | 55 (14) | 0.156 |
| Treatment strategy, n (%) | 0.220 | ||
| Monotherapy | 23 (18.4) | 103 (26.9) | |
| Step-up therapy | 29 (23.2) | 92 (24.0) | |
| Initial combination with prednisone | 38 (30.4) | 95 (24.8) | |
| Initial combination with infliximab | 35 (28.0) | 93 (24.3) | |
| Rheumatoid factor positive, n (%) | 78 (62.4) | 251 (65.5) | 0.524 |
| ACPA-positive, n (%) | 70 (56.0) | 221 (57.8) | 0.177 |
| DAS44, mean (SD) | 4.30 (0.87) | 4.46 (0.86) | 0.069 |
| DAS28, mean (SD) | 5.82 (1.03) | 5.98 (1.00) | 0.126 |
| VAS general health (mm), mean (SD) | 53.4 (22.0) | 52.0 (19.5) | 0.492 |
| Tender joint count, median (IQR) | 11.0 (7–15.5) | 14.0 (10–19) | < 0.001 |
| Swollen joint count, median (IQR) | 13.0 (10–19) | 14.0 (10–18) | 0.957 |
| ESR (mm/h), median (IQR) | 36 (19–57) | 37 (20–51) | 0.971 |
| C-reactive protein, median (IQR) | 21 (9–59) | 21 (8–49) | 0.459 |
| HAQ, mean (SD) | 1.4 (0.7) | 1.4 (0.7) | 0.651 |
| Erosions, median (IQR) | 1.0 (0.5–3.0) | 2.0 (0.5–5.5) | 0.005 |
| BMI, mean (SD) | 26.0 (4.2) | 26.0 (4.2) | 0.860 |
ACPA: anticitrullinated protein antibodies; DAS44: Disease Activity Score at 44-joint count; DAS28: Disease Activity Score at 28-joint count; VAS: visual analog scale (range 0–100 mm); IQR: interquartile range; ESR: erythrocyte sedimentation rate; HAQ: Health Assessment Questionnaire (range 0–3); BMI: body mass index.