| ACR50 achieved for | ⩾1 Visits | ⩾2 Visits* | ⩾3 Visits* | ⩾4 Visits* | ⩾5 Visits* | ⩾6 Visits* |
| LDAS achieved for | ⩾1 Visits | ⩾2 Visits* | ⩾3 Visits* | ⩾4 Visits* | ⩾5 Visits* | ⩾6 Visits* |
| Overall success, n/N (%) | 302/636 (47) | 206/636 (32) | 135/636 (21) | 93/636 (15) | 43/636 (7) | 20/636 (3) |
| NNS†, n | 58 | 51 | 79 | 81 | 149 | 286 |
| Structural damage at year 1‡, LR+ (95% CI) | 1.24 (1.02 to 1.51) | 1.46 (1.13 to 1.89) | 1.52 (1.07 to 2.16) | 1.63 (1.05 to 2.53) | 1.82 (0.95 to 3.48) | 1.76 (0.66 to 4.74) |
| Patient satisfaction at month 6§, LR+ (95% CI) | 5.21 (3.1 to 8.75) | 15.86 (5.16 to 48.73) | 31.41 (4.44 to 222.34) | Infinite (N/A) | Infinite (N/A) | Infinite (N/A) |
| Overall success, n/N (%) | 218/636 (34) | 132/636 (21) | 77/636 (12) | 44/636 (7) | 22/636 (4) | 10/636 (2) |
| NNS†, n | 104 | 109 | 134 | 119 | 184 | 406 |
| Structural damage at year 1‡, LR+ (95% CI) | 1.31 (1.01 to 1.70) | 1.38 (0.95 to 2.00) | 2.28 (1.45 to 3.58) | 3.05 (1.68 to 5.55) | 3.53 (1.48 to 8.40) | 2.27 (0.60 to 8.61) |
| Patient satisfaction at month 6§, LR+ (95% CI) | 2.59 (1.67 to 4.02) | 5.91 (2.47 to 14.12) | 17.58 (2.47 to 125.16) | Infinite | Infinite | Infinite |
*Consecutive visits: equal weighting was applied. The total number of patients for each analysis was: †n = 638; ‡n = 610; §n = 632. A lower number of patients needed to study (NNS) value indicates greater discriminatory capacity; higher positive likelihood ratio (LR+) values indicate greater probability of observing no structural damage or satisfaction with treatment. Abatacept and placebo treatment groups were pooled for radiographic progression and patient satisfaction and unpooled for NNS. ACR, American College of Rheumatology; LDAS, low disease activity state (disease activity score in 28 joints (DAS28) (C-reactive protein) ⩽3.2).