Abstract
Abnormal body mass index (BMI) was associated with worse rheumatic markers in psoriatic arthritis (PsA) and rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Aiming to describe PsA and RA patients stratified by BMI, we performed a descriptive study in PsA and RA patients (two distinct cohorts) in the Swiss Clinical Quality Management in Rheumatic Diseases (SCQM) registry. New users of biologic or targeted synthetic disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (b/tsDMARDs) were stratified by BMI at the start of their treatment (underweight, normal weight, overweight, obese). The PsA underweight and normal weight categories were merged. Age at disease onset and further characteristics at the start of the first b/tsDMARD treatment were compared across BMI categories vs. the corresponding normal weight group. The study included 819 PsA (36.5% overweight, 23.8% obese) and 3217 RA patients (4.4% underweight, 31.8% overweight, 17.0% obese). Compared to the corresponding normal weight group, PsA and RA obese patients had significantly (p < 0.05) higher C-reactive protein, worse disease activity, and lower quality of life (QoL). Obese PsA patients had significantly worse skin manifestation and pain, while obese RA patients had significantly higher erythrocyte sedimentation rate and tender joint counts, as well as lower seropositive prevalence. To conclude, obese PsA and RA patients presented worse disease activity and poorer QoL than those with normal weight.
Highlights
Obesity represents an increasing healthcare burden worldwide [1]; it affects approximately 15% of the European population [2] and 11% of the Swiss population [3]
We identified that obese patients were generally older at disease onset and they had significantly higher C-reactive protein (CRP) levels, worse disease activity scores, and lower quality of life (QoL) at the time of starting their first b/tsDMARD treatment compared to normal weight patients
This study provided a clinical picture of psoriatic arthritis (PsA) and rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients in Switzerland across different body mass index (BMI) categories
Summary
Obesity represents an increasing healthcare burden worldwide [1]; it affects approximately 15% of the European population [2] and 11% of the Swiss population [3]. Concerns about obesity or high body mass index (BMI) hindering the management of psoriatic arthritis (PsA) and rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients have emerged in the past decade [4,6,7,8,9]. Obesity was associated with worse disease activity and disease management in both PsA and RA [12,15,16,17,18,19,20,21] and a detrimental response to anti-tumor necrosis factor alpha (anti-TNF) treatments [15,17,18]. Despite the association of weight loss with a better disease outcome in PsA patients [22,23], a low BMI (underweight) was associated with worse RA disease activity [10,24]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
