Patient and disease characteristics at treatment initiation of leflunomide (LEF), methotrexate (MTX), and sulfasalazine (SSZ). (A) Unmatched data of all available treatments. (B) After matching LEF treatments with MTX and SSZ treatments, respectively
| A | LEF (n=168) | MTX (n=834) | SSZ (n=447) |
|---|---|---|---|
| *χ2 Pearson: p=0.002; †Mann-Whitney U test: p<0.001 compared with MTX and SSZ; ‡t test: p=0.002 compared with MTX. | |||
| Cohort, % General Hospital | 62.5 | 54.6 | 56.4 |
| Sex, % female | 82.5 | 81.1 | 80.9 |
| Rheumatoid factor status, % positive | 69.6 | 69.4 | 59.3* |
| Age (years), mean (SD) | 58.4 (12.9) | 61.1 (13.6) | 59.8 (14.8) |
| Previous DMARDs, median number (quartiles) | 3 (2; 4)† | 1 (0; 2) | 1 (0; 2) |
| ESR (mm/1st h), mean (SD) | 38 (27) | 42 (27) | 41 (26) |
| CRP (mg/l), mean (SD) | 26.2 (29.3) | 31.0 (31.2) | 25.3 (26.8)‡ |
| MTX matches* | SSZ matches* | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| B | LEF (n=168) | MTX (n=168) | LEF (n=159) | SSZ (n=159) |
| *All matched pairs were derived from the same hospital cohort; †Mann-Whitney U test: p<0.001 compared with LEF. | ||||
| Cohort, % General Hospital | 62.5 | 59.5 | 64.8 | 56.0 |
| Sex, % female | 82.5 | 78.6 | 81.5 | 81.8 |
| Rheumatoid factor status, % positive | 69.6 | 71.9 | 69.1 | 61.2 |
| Age (years), mean (SD) | 58.4 (12.9 | 58.4 (12.3) | 58.6 (12.9) | 60.1 (13.0) |
| Previous DMARDs, median number (quartiles) | 3 (2; 4) | 2 (2; 4) | 3 (2; 4) | 1 (0; 3)† |
| ESR (mm/1st h), mean (SD) | 38 (27 | 38 (27) | 39 (27) | 38 (26) |
| CRP (mg/l), mean (SD) | 26.2 (29.3 | 27.3 (27.4) | 25.8 (27.7) | 22.7 (22.3) |