Baseline characteristics of the patients
| Characteristics | Total population (n=94) | Continuation | Tapering | Stopping | p Values |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arm 1 (n=35) | Arm 2 (n=32) | Arm 3 (n=27) | |||
| Age, years | 55.0 (19) | 55.0 (19.5) | 54.0 (18) | 54.5 (19) | 0.90 |
| Females, % (N) | 59.6 (56) | 57.1 (20) | 56.2 (18) | 66.7 (18) | 0.67 |
| Disease duration, years | 5.0 (7) | 5.0 (7) | 6.0 (6) | 3.0 (5) | 0.13 |
| Remission duration, months | 12.0 (12.0) | 12.0 (27) | 9.0 (12) | 12.0 (10) | 0.13 |
| DAS-28, units | 1.9 (0.8) | 1.9 (1.1) | 1.9 (0.7) | 2.0 (0.9) | 0.56 |
| ACR/EULAR remission, % (N) | 77.6 (73) | 77.1 (27) | 81.2 (26) | 74.0 (20) | 0.80 |
| ESR, mm | 13.0 (15) | 11.0 (17) | 13.0 (13) | 14.5 (8.5) | 0.79 |
| CRP, mg/dL | 0.28 (0.23) | 0.27 (0.24) | 0.28 (0.33) | 0.26 (0.21) | 0.57 |
| MBDA score | 21.5 (22.0) | 25.0 (13.0) | 19.0 (22.0) | 18.0 (23.0) | 0.69 |
| HAQ, units | 0.0 (0.13) | 0.0 (0.13) | 0.0 (0.25) | 0.0 (0.16) | 0.77 |
| Positive RF, % (N) | 60.6 (57) | 51.4 (18) | 71.8 (23) | 59.2 (16) | 0.23 |
| Positive ACPA, % (N) | 56.3 (53) | 57.1 (20) | 59.3 (19) | 51.8 (14) | 0.84 |
| Methotrexate use, % (N) | 84.0 (79) | 85.7 (30) | 71.8 (23) | 96.3 (26) | 0.003 |
| Other DMARD* use, % (N) | 9.5 (9) | 8.5 (3) | 12.5 (4) | 7.4 (2) | 0.78 |
| Biological DMARD† Use, % (N) | 37.2 (35) | 42.8 (15) | 50.0 (16) | 14.8 (4) | 0.014 |
*Leflunomide, sulfasalazine, hydroxychloroquine.
†Tumour necrosis factor inhibitors and tocilizumab; descriptive results in median (IQR) due to deviation from normal distribution, if not stated otherwise.
ACPA, anticitrullinated protein antibody; ACR, American College of Rheumatology; CRP, C reactive protein; DAS-28, disease activity score-28 (based on ESR); DMARDs, disease modifying antirheumatic drugs; ESR, erythrocyte sedimentation rate; EULAR, European League Against Rheumatism; HAQ, health assessment questionnaire; MBDA, multibiomarker disease activity; RF, rheumatoid factor; VAS, visual analogue scale.