Baseline patient characteristics of GC and COBRA cohorts
| GC cohort (n=9) | COBRA cohort (n=19) | |
|---|---|---|
| Age (years) | 52 (8) | 51 (14) |
| Female, n (%) | 5 (56) | 12 (63) |
| DAS28 | 6.3 (1.0) | 5.3 (0.9) |
| Erosive disease, n (%)* | 8 (89) | 10 (67) |
| RF, n (%) | 5 (71) | 13 (72) |
| ACPA, n (%) | 4 (57) | 13 (75) |
| ESR (mm/h) | 45 (18–80) | 34 (26) |
| CRP (mg/dl) | 15 (4–60) | 16 (8–30) |
| Disease duration (months) | 10 (6–29) | 3.2 (4.4) |
| Leptin (ng/ml) | 39 (13–120) | 12 (10–37) |
| Resistin (ng/ml) | 31 (24–39) | 16.9 (13.5–22.0) |
| Adiponectin (mg/ml) | 72 (43–91) | 15.7 (15.2–16.3) |
| Visfatin (ng/ml) | 5.6 (4.3–7.7) | 1.4 (1.1–3.7) |
| Vaspin (ng/ml) | 0.30 (0.22–0.64) | 0.51 (0.16–0.72) |
Data are represented as mean (SD), median (IQR) or n (%), as appropriate. Baseline values of patients with RA treated with an oral GC (60 mg prednisolone daily for 1 week followed by 40 mg prednisolone daily for 1 week; GC cohort), or combination of oral dosages of hydroxychloroquine (400 mg/day), sulfasalazine (2 g/day), methotrexate (10 mg/week) and step-down high-dose prednisolone (tapered in 6 weeks from 60 to 7.5 mg/day (thereafter until end of trial); COBRA cohort). Presence of erosive joint disease was determined by x-ray. Presence of IgM-RF was defined as serum levels ≥12.5 IU/ml for the GC cohort and ≥30 IU/ml for the COBRA cohort.
ACPA, anticitrullinated peptide antibody; CRP, C reactive protein; DAS28, disease activity score evaluated in 28 joints; ESR, erythrocyte sedimentation rate; GC, glucocorticoid; RF, IgM rheumatoid factor.