Skip to main content

Table 1 Study participant characteristics

From: Carotid artery volumetric measures associate with clinical ten-year cardiovascular (CV) risk scores and individual traditional CV risk factors in rheumatoid arthritis; a carotid-MRI feasibility study

Variable

Expressed as

Patients with RA

Controls

n = 64

n = 24

Demographics

 Age, years

mean, SD

59.6 (9.4) (range 31, 78)

51.8 (11.7) (range 35–80)

 Female

n (%)

45 (70.3)

13 (54.2)

 Ethnicity

n (%)

60 (94.0) white

21/22 (95.8) white

CV risk profile

 PMH hypertension

n (%)

22 (34.4)

1/21 (4.2)

 PMH hypercholesterolaemia

n (%)

16 (25.0)

1/21 (4.2)

 Smoking status:

  Never

n (%)

28 (43.8)

11/21 (52.4)

  Ex-smoker

28 (43.8)

8/21 (38.1)

  Current

8 (12.5)

2/21 (9.5)

 Alcohol intake, units/week

median (IQR)

2 (0, 8) (n = 63)

1 (0, 6) (n = 21)

 FHx premature CVDa

n (%)

14 (21.9)

4/20 (16.7)

 Five or more fruit/vegetables daily intake, days/week

median (IQR)

5 (4, 7) (n = 63)

6 (4, 7) (n = 19)

 Moderate exercise, mins/week

median (IQR)

40 (0, 156) (n = 62)

60 (0, 240) (n = 20)

 Number of current anti-hypertensives

n (%)

8 (12.5) on 1 drug

1/21 (4.8) on 2 drugs

8 (12.5) on 2 drugs

1 (1.6) on 3 drugs

 Current use of statin

n (%)

11 (17.2)

1/21 (4.2)

 BMI

mean, SD

25.8 (3.3)

25.2 (3.4)

 Waist/hip ratio

mean, SD

0.84 (0.08) (n = 62)

0.82 (0.10) (n = 21)

 Systolic BP, mmHg

mean, SD

134 (20)

125 (14) (n = 23)

 Diastolic BP, mmHg

mean, SD

80 (12)

74 (10) (n = 23)

Fasting blood tests

 Fasting glucose, mmol/L

mean, SD

4.9 (1.0) (n = 60)

4.7 (0.5) (n = 19)

 Fasting total cholesterol, mmol/L

mean, SD

5.3 (1.1) (n = 63)

5.1 (1.0) (n = 19)

 Fasting HDL-C, mmol/L

mean, SD

1.6 (0.4) (n = 61)

1.6 (0.4) (n = 19)

 Fasting LDL-C, mmol/L

mean, SD

3.1 (1.0) (n = 61)

3.0 (0.9) (n = 19)

 Fasting TC/HDL-C ratio

mean, SD

3.4 (1.1) (n = 61)

3.3 (1.0) (n = 19)

 Fasting triglycerides, mmol/Lb

geometric mean

1.1 (n = 63)

1.0 (n = 19)

 HOMA-IRb

geometric mean

1.06 (n = 60)c

1.13 (n = 20)

 NT-proBNP, pg/mlb

geometric mean

53.3 (n = 60)

40.2 (n = 20)

Ten-year clinical risk scores

 Framingham:

median (IQR)

14.5 (6.3, 27.9)d

4.4 (1.3, 14.4) (n = 18)

14.6 (8.1, 29.1)e

 Joint British Societies 2:

median (IQR)

11.9 (4.9, 20.2)d

3.9 (0.8, 11.5) (n = 18)

12.0 (6.1, 22.2)e

  1. BMI body mass index, BP blood pressure, CVD cardiovascular disease, FHx family history, HOMA-IR homeostasis model of assessment of insulin resistance, LDL-C low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, NT-proBNP N-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide, PMH past medical history of, RA rheumatoid arthritis, TC/HDL-C total cholesterol/high-density lipoprotein cholesterol ratio
  2. aDefined as first-degree relative with a history of CVD when 60 years old or younger if female, and 55 years old or younger if relative
  3. bVariables log transformed prior to analysis
  4. cExcluding outlier: 1.01 (n = 59)
  5. dAdjusted to 2010 European League Against Rheumatism (EULAR) guidelines [15]
  6. eAdjusted to 2017 EULAR guidelines [34]
Back to article page

Arthritis Research & Therapy

ISSN: 1478-6362

Contact us