Baseline characteristics of patients with early RA from the SWEFOT trial.
| Variables | Stratified by Disease Activity (DAS28) at 3 Months of Followup | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| DAS28 ≤ 3.2, n = 104a | DAS28 > 3.2, n = 194b | p | |
| Baseline characteristics | |||
| Female, n (%) | 60 (58) | 154 (79) | < 0.001 |
| Age, yrs | 61 (51–69) | 55 (44–62) | 0.001 |
| Smoking, n (%) | 19 (24) | 47 (26) | 0.780 |
| Symptom duration, mos | 5 (3–8) | 5 (4–8) | 0.283 |
| Anti-CCP–positive, n (%) | 63 (64) | 107 (58) | 0.292 |
| RF-positive, n (%) | 73 (71) | 124 (65) | 0.274 |
| Prednisolone use, n (%) | 15 (14) | 20 (10) | 0.293 |
| 28–swollen joint count | 9 (7–13) | 11 (7–15) | 0.087 |
| 28–tender joint count | 6 (4–10) | 10 (6–15) | < 0.001 |
| ESR, mm/h | 28 (15–42) | 36 (24–62) | 0.001 |
| CRP, mg/l | 15 (9–33) | 20 (9–53) | 0.033 |
| PtGA (VAS 0–100 mm) | 50 (29–67) | 63 (43–77) | 0.001 |
| Pain (VAS 0–100 mm) | 49 (33–64) | 62 (46–74) | < 0.001 |
| HAQ | 1.0 (0.50–1.38) | 1.25 (0.88–1.75) | < 0.001 |
| DAS28 | 5.2 (4.6–5.9) | 5.9 (5.3–6.4) | < 0.001 |
| Baseline protein biomarkers and MBDA score | |||
| VCAM-1, mg/l | 0.70 (0.60–0.86) | 0.64 (0.56–0.77) | 0.005 |
| TNF-RI, μg/l | 1.9 (1.6–2.4) | 1.7 (1.4–2.2) | 0.005 |
| IL-6, ng/l | 49 (22–97) | 67 (29–150) | 0.044 |
| CRP, mg/l | 20 (8–43) | 27 (10–110) | 0.045 |
| MMP-1, μg/l | 9.35 (5.87–15) | 11 (6.48–18) | 0.067 |
| MMP-3, μg/l | 48 (28–82) | 56 (29–123) | 0.105 |
| Leptin, μg/l | 9.25 (3.58–14) | 10.50 (4.60–20.25) | 0.108 |
| VEGF, ng/l | 405 (265–600) | 390 (250–590) | 0.719 |
| Resistin, μg/l | 6.60 (5.35–8.78) | 6.80 (5.10–8.68) | 0.857 |
| YKL-40, μg/l | 85 (54–120) | 79 (57–130) | 0.862 |
| EGF, ng/l | 160 (103–258) | 170 (100–253) | 0.903 |
| SAA, mg/l | 20 (7–46) | 17 (4–73) | 0.990 |
| MBDA score | 59 (47–66) | 59 (49–74) | 0.143 |
Data are expressed in median (IQR) unless otherwise specified.
↵a Missing patients from DAS28 ≤ 3.2 column: smoking (n = 25), anti-CCP (n = 6), and RF (n = 1).
↵b Missing patients from DAS28 > 3.2 column: smoking (n = 11), anti-CCP (n = 9), RF, PtGA, pain (n = 2), HAQ (n = 4), and DAS28 (n = 3). RA: rheumatoid arthritis; IQR: interquartile range; anti-CCP: anticyclic citrullinated peptide; RF: rheumatoid factor; ESR: erythrocyte sedimentation rate; CRP: C-reactive protein; PtGA: patient’s global assessment of disease activity score; VAS: visual analog scale; HAQ: Health Assessment Questionnaire; DAS28: 28-joint count Disease Activity Score; MBDA: multibiomarker disease activity; VCAM-1: vascular cell adhesion molecule 1; TNF-RI: tumor necrosis factor receptor I; IL-6: interleukin 6; MMP: matrix metalloproteinase; VEGF: vascular endothelial growth factor; YKL-40: human cartilage glycoprotein-39; EGF: epidermal growth factor; SAA: serum amyloid A; SWEFOT: Swedish Pharmacotherapy trial.