Abstract
This study aimed to evaluate the prevalence of comorbidities in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) compared with the non-RA population. The 2010–2012 Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES), which assesses the general health status of populations in South Korea using interviews and basic health assessment, was analyzed retrospectively. Weighted prevalence and odds ratio (OR) of comorbidities were analyzed in patients with RA compared with the non-RA population. The overall weighted (n = 37,453,158) prevalence of RA was 1.5%. Patients with RA were older and more female predominant than subjects without RA. The prevalence of living in an urban area, college graduation, alcohol consumption and smoking was lower in patients with RA than non-RA. Patients with RA had more comorbidities including hypertension, dyslipidemia, myocardial infarction (MI) or angina, stoke, osteoarthritis, lung cancer, colon cancer, pulmonary tuberculosis, asthma, diabetes, depression, thyroid disease and chronic kidney disease. After adjusting socioeconomic and lifestyle characteristics, RA was associated with an increased prevalence of MI or angina (OR 1.86, 95% CI 1.17–2.96, p = 0.009), pulmonary TB (OR 1.95, 95% CI 1.24–3.09, p = 0.004), asthma (OR 1.97, 95% CI 1.05–3.71, p = 0.036), thyroid disease (OR 1.71, 95% CI 1.05–2.77), depression (OR 2.38, 95% CI 1.47–3.85, p < 0.001) and hepatitis B (OR 2.34, 95% CI 1.15–4.80, p = 0.020) compared with the non-RA population. Prevalence of solid cancer was not significantly associated with RA after adjustment.
Highlights
Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic inflammatory disease and with dominant features of joint inflammation and damage
The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of comorbidities in Korean adult population with RA compared with the non-RA population, with adjusting for socioeconomic and lifestyle characteristics using data from the 2010–2012 Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES)
The most frequently associated comorbidities in patients with RA included hypertension (30.3%), osteoarthritis (22.6%), dyslipidemia (14.1%), diabetes (12.9%), depression (11.2%), pulmonary tuberculosis (8.6%), thyroid disease (8.0%), asthma (7.3%), and myocardial infarction or angina (5.7%). These data partly correspond with COMORA, an earlier international, cross-sectional study, which reported that depression (15%), asthma (6.6%), and cardiovascular events (6%) were the most frequently associated diseases with RA [6]
Summary
Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic inflammatory disease and with dominant features of joint inflammation and damage. RA is associated with progressive disability, systemic complications, and socioeconomic costs [1]. Survival of patients with RA is worse than survival of the general population [2]. Reah et al reported that RA patients often die of cardiovascular disease in the long-term observational study [3]. The higher death rate of patients with RA appears to be the consequence of more serious co-morbid conditions [4]. RA is associated with an increased prevalence of several comorbidities [5].
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