Characteristics of patients with early and established rheumatoid arthritis, and healthy controls, whose sera were used for analysis of expression of circulating miRNAs in the present study
| Early RA | Established RA | Healthy controls | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sex (F/M) | 25/9 | 17/9 | 9/7 | ||
| Age (years) | 47.30±14.41 | 57.89±13.29 | 39.00±14.12 | ||
| Disease duration | <8 months | 9.28±6.52 years | 0 | ||
| Treatment | Baseline | 3 months | 12 months | ||
| Methotrexate | 0 | 28 | 28 | 14 | 0 |
| Sulfasalazine | 0 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 0 |
| Leflunomide | 0 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 0 |
| Glucocorticoids | 0 | 30 | 30 | 6 | 0 |
| Biologics | 0 | 0 | 0 | 19 | 0 |
| Clinical characteristics | Baseline | 3 months | 12 months | ||
| n | 31 | 31 | 32 | 28 | 16 |
| RF positivity (%) | 64.52 | NA | 66.67 | 85.71 | NA |
| IgG RF (U/mL) | 31.79±42.86 | NA | 19.83±17.48 | NA | NA |
| IgM RF (U/mL) | 78.01±225.50 | NA | 84.89±186.30 | NA | NA |
| IgA RF (U/mL) | 59.14±102.70 | NA | 36.54±79.37 | NA | NA |
| ACPA positivity (%) | 51.61 | NA | 48.48 | 85.71 | NA |
| ACPA (mmol/L) | 1018±1871 | NA | 973±1600 | NA | |
| DAS28 | 5.41±1.61 | 2.60±1.21*** | 2.54±1.18*** | 4.10±1.32 | NA |
| CRP (mg/L) | 18.36±23.30 | 4.03±6.60*** | 2.77±2.57*** | 21.05±37.58 | NA |
| ESR (mm/h) | 31.00±19.52 | 15.09±9.87*** | 11.43±7.71*** | NA | NA |
| Leucocytes ×109/mm3 | 8.34±2.53 | 7.41±1.74 | 6.70±2.72** | NA | NA |
Data are expressed as the mean±SD.
*p<0.05, **p<0.01, ***p<0.001 compared with baseline.
ACPA, anticitrullinated proteins antibodies; CRP, C reactive protein; DAS28, disease activity score calculated with ESR; ESR, erythrocyte sedimentation rate; NA, not analysed; RA, rheumatoid arthritis; RF, rheumatoid factor.