Baseline clinical characteristics of patients with RA treated with TNF inhibitors. Values are mean ± SD or % unless otherwise specified.
| Variables | PCP Group, n = 51 | Non-PCP Group, n = 265 | p |
|---|---|---|---|
| Characteristics | |||
| Age, yrs | 65.5 ± 9.5 | 55.2 ± 12.7 | < 0.001† |
| Female | 68.6 | 84.2 | 0.009‡ |
| Disease duration, yrs | 10.8 ± 8.7 | 9.3 ± 8.3 | 0.203† |
| Comorbid pulmonary disease | 47.1 | 14.3 | < 0.001‡ |
| Diabetes mellitus | 23.5 | 6.8 | 0.001‡ |
| Laboratory data | |||
| White blood cells < 4000/µl | 2.0 | 0.8 | 0.402‡ |
| Lymphocytes < 1000/µl | 32.6 | 23.8 | 0.222‡ |
| Serum IgG, mg/dl | 1370 ± 386 | 1552 ± 497 | 0.064† |
| Concomitant treatment | |||
| MTX | 90.2 | 76.2 | 0.026‡ |
| MTX dosage, mg/week | 8.2 ± 2.9 | 8.3 ± 2.3 | 0.447† |
| MTX dosage > 8 mg/week | 23.5 | 20.4 | 0.612‡ |
| Oral corticosteroids | 86.3 | 66.0 | 0.004‡ |
| PSL-equivalent dosage of corticosteroids, mg/day | 9.3 ± 9.9 | 6.0 ± 3.2 | 0.008† |
| PSL-equivalent dosage of corticosteroid ≥ 5 mg/day | 70.6 | 47.5 | 0.003‡ |
↵† p values were calculated using the Mann-Whitney U test.
↵‡ p values were calculated using the chi-square test. Comorbid pulmonary disease = interstitial pneumonia, bronchiectasis, follicular bronchiolitis, chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases, chronic bronchitis, bronchial asthma, middle lobe syndrome, old pulmonary tuberculosis, old pleuritis, pneumoconiosis. RA: rheumatoid arthritis; TNF: tumor necrosis factor; PCP: Pneumocystis jirovecii pneumonia; IgG: immunoglobulin G; MTX: methotrexate; PSL: prednisolone.