Table 1 Baseline characteristics of the patients categorized according to remission at 12-month follow-up
Variable | All patients (n = 35) | Remission at follow-up | p Valuea | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
No (n = 15) | Yes (n = 20) | |||
Age, years, mean (SD) | 55 (14) | 57 (15) | 53 (14) | 0.43 |
Female sex, n (%) | 28 (80%) | 15 (75%) | 13 (87%) | 0.39 |
Rheumatoid factor-positive, n (%) | 26 (74%) | 10 (67%) | 16 (80%) | 0.37 |
Anti-citrullinated protein antibody-positive, n (%) | 27 (77%) | 10 (67%) | 17 (85%) | 0.20 |
Smokers, n (%) | 8 (23%) | 5 (33%) | 3 (15%) | 0.20 |
Duration of symptoms, months, mean (SD) | 6 (7) | 6 (10) | 6 (4) | 0.89 |
Number of tender joints, 0–68, mean (SD) | 7 (6) | 10 (7) | 6 (5) | 0.040 |
Number of swollen joints, 0–66, mean (SD) | 6 (5) | 6 (4) | 7 (6) | 0.78 |
Erythrocyte sedimentation rate, mm/h, mean (SD) | 19 (15) | 22 (18) | 16 (13) | 0.32 |
Plasma C-reactive protein, mg/L, mean (SD) | 7 (7) | 6 (3) | 8 (9) | 0.41 |
White blood cell count, ×109/L, mean (SD) | 6.9 (2.4) | 7.5 (3.1) | 6.5 (1.6) | 0.23 |
Patient global assessment, 0–100-mm VAS, mean (SD) | 40 (25) | 54 (24) | 31 (21) | 0.0073 |
DAS28 score, mean (SD) | 3.63 (1.14) | 4.08 (1.19) | 3.29 (1.01) | 0.040 |
Number of DMARDs started, mean (range) | 2.2 (0–3) | 2.1 (1–3) | 2.3 (0–3) | 0.72 |
Single DMARD, n | 4 | 2 | 2 | |
Combination of two DMARDs, n | 13 | 9 | 4 | |
Combination of three DMARDs, n | 16 | 4 | 12 | |
None, n | 2 | 0 | 2 | |