| 1. |
- Kastbom, Alf, et al.
(författare)
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Influence of FCGR3A genotype on the therapeutic response to rituximab in rheumatoid arthritis : an observational cohort study
- 2012
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Ingår i: BMJ Open. - : BMJ. - 2044-6055. ; 2:5
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Objectives To determine whether a polymorphism in the Fcγ receptor type IIIA (FCGR3A-F158V), influencing immunoglobulin G binding affinity, relates to the therapeutic efficacy of rituximab in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients.Design Observational cohort study.Setting Three university hospital rheumatology units in Sweden.Participants Patients with established RA (n=177; 145 females and 32 males) who started rituximab (Mabthera) as part of routine care.Primary outcome measures Response to rituximab therapy in relation to FCGR3A genotype, including stratification for sex.Results The frequency of responders differed significantly across FCGR3A genotypes (p=0.017 in a 3×2 contingency table). Heterozygous patients showed the highest response rate at 83%, as compared with patients carrying 158FF (68%) or 158VV (56%) (p=0.028 and 0.016, respectively). Among 158VV patients, response rates differed between male and female patients (p=0.036), but not among 158FF or 158VF patients (p=0.72 and 0.46, respectively).Conclusions Therapeutic efficacy of rituximab in RA patients is influenced by FCGR3A genotype, with the highest response rates found among heterozygous patients. This may suggest that different rituximab mechanisms of action in RA are optimally balanced in FCGR3A-158VF patients. Similar to the previously described associations with RA susceptibility and disease course, the impact of 158VV on rituximab response may be influenced by sex.
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| 2. |
- Laki, Judit, et al.
(författare)
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Very high levels of anti-citrullinated protein antibodies are associated with HLA-DRB1*15 non-shared epitope allele in patients with rheumatoid arthritis
- 2012
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Ingår i: Arthritis and Rheumatism. - : Wiley. - 0004-3591 .- 1529-0131. ; 64:7, s. 2078-2084
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Objective Production of anticitrullinated protein antibodies (ACPAs) is an important biomarker for rheumatoid arthritis (RA). We undertook this study to determine whether genetic factors (HLADRB1 alleles) are associated with extreme ACPA levels in individuals with ACPA-positive RA, and to ascertain whether there are any phenotypic characteristics associated with these subgroups of RA. Methods HLADRB1 allelic groups were genotyped in 1,073 ACPA-positive RA patients from the Swedish Epidemiological Investigation of Rheumatoid Arthritis study. We found that 283 patients (26.4%) had high ACPA levels (defined as >1,500 units/ml using the Euro-Diagnostica anti-CCP2 test), while the rest of the patients had moderate ACPA levels and served as the comparison group. A replication group consisted of 235 RA patients. Results No significant differences in baseline disease activity were observed between patients with high and those with moderate ACPA levels. However, the HLADRB1*15 allele was associated with high ACPA levels (P = 0.0002). A similar trend was detected in HLADRB1*15positive patients in the replication cohort, with meta-analysis of the discovery and replication cohorts demonstrating an overall effect of HLADRB1*15 on development of high ACPA levels in both the discovery and replication cohorts (P < 0.0001 by Mantel-Haenszel test with a fixed-effects model). Conclusion Our data indicate that HLADRB1*15 may promote the production of high ACPA levels. Due to the high value of ACPA level scores in the 2010 American College of Rheumatology/European League Against Rheumatism classification criteria for RA, the presence of HLADRB1*15 may, at least in part, contribute to fulfilling the criteria for RA. This illustrates the complex nature of the genetic regulation of ACPA levels. Additional mechanistic studies of the regulation of ACPAs and ACPA-positive RA are pending.
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| 3. |
- Rezaei, Hamed, et al.
(författare)
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Evaluation of hand bone loss by digital X-ray radiogrammetry as a complement to clinical and radiographic assessment in early rheumatoid arthritis: results from the SWEFOT trial
- 2013
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Ingår i: BMC Musculoskeletal Disorders. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1471-2474. ; 14
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: To investigate hand bone loss (HBL) measured by digital X-ray radiogrammetry (DXR) in patients with early rheumatoid arthritis (RA) receiving different treatment regimens, and to evaluate if DXR change rates during the first 12 months correlate with radiological damage after 24 months. Methods: From the total SWEFOT trial population, 159 patients had hand radiographs correctly timed and taken with same modality to be analyzed with DXR. All patients started treatment with methotrexate. After 3-4 months, patients with DAS28 > 3.2 were randomized to add sulfasalazine and hydroxychloroquine (triple therapy) or infliximab (MTX + INF). Those with DAS28 <= 3.2 were followed in regular care. Radiographic progression over 24 months was scored according to the Sharp van der Heijde score (SHS) and defined as > 5 increase in T-SHS over 24 months. Hand bone mineral density (BMD) was measured by DXR at inclusion and 12 months and a change >= 2.5 mg/cm(2)/month was used as a cut-off for HBL. Results: In the MTX responders, triple therapy, and MTX + INF groups, the proportions with HBL were 4.1%, 22.2% and 16.4%, respectively (p = 0.01), and the mean (SD) radiological progression in these groups was 3.91 (6.72), 7.40 (14.63) and 2.72 (4.55) respectively (p = 0.06). Patients with HBL had significantly greater risk for radiographic progression, compared with patients without HBL (odds ratio 3.09, 95% CI = 1.20-7.79, p = 0.02). Conclusions: Non-responders to MTX had a significantly greater risk of HBL than MTX-responders, despite the add-on therapies. Patients with HBL during the 12 months had greater risk of radiographic progression after 24 months. Evaluation of HBL may help to identify patients who are at risk of radiographic progression.
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| 4. |
- Rezaei, Hamed, et al.
(författare)
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In early rheumatoid arthritis, patients with a good initial response to methotrexate have excellent 2-year clinical outcomes, but radiological progression is not fully prevented: data from the methotrexate responders population in the SWEFOT trial
- 2012
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Ingår i: Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases. - : BMJ. - 1468-2060 .- 0003-4967. ; 71:2, s. 186-191
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Objective To investigate the 2-year clinical and radiological outcomes of patients with early rheumatoid arthritis (RA; symptom duration <1 year) who had initially responded well to methotrexate monotherapy. Methods In the SWEFOT trial, all 487 patients started methotrexate (target dose 20 mg/week). After 3-4 months, 147 had low disease activity, 28-joint based disease activity score (DAS28) <= 3.2. These patients were not randomly selected but were followed in regular care for 2 years. Clinical outcomes and radiographic progression according to the van der Heijde modified Sharp (SvdH) score were analysed. Results The majority of the 147 patients continued on methotrexate monotherapy. After 1 and 2 years, DAS28 remission was achieved in 59.6% and 71.8% and mean observed DAS28 values were 2.53 and 2.25, respectively. Despite the favourable clinical course, a proportion of the patients progressed radiographically with a mean (SD) increase in the SvdH score after 2 years of 3.90 (6.84). There was no significant difference in progression between patients in DAS28 remission versus not in remission (p=0.73). At baseline, approximately half the patients had no radiographic damage, while after 2 years the proportion was approximately 20%. Conclusion Most early RA patients who achieve low disease activity after 3-4 months of methotrexate monotherapy continue to have low disease activity during 2 years follow-up, and additional treatment is needed infrequently. Some radiological progression occurs in most patients, and may be marked or severe in some, even despite sustained DAS28 remission. Close monitoring for radiological progression is thus warranted.
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| 5. |
- Sandberg, Maria, et al.
(författare)
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Recent infections are associated with decreased risk of rheumatoid arthritis: a population-based case-control study.
- 2014
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Ingår i: Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases. - : BMJ. - 1468-2060 .- 0003-4967. ; 74:5, s. 904-907
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Objectives Do recent infections affect the risk of rheumatoid arthritis (RA)? Methods We used the population-based case-control study EIRA (N= 6401) on incident RA and healthy controls, matched for sex, age, calendar period and area of residence. Gastroenteritis, urinary tract infection, genital infection, prostatitis, sinusitis, tonsillitis and pneumonia during the 2 years before inclusion in the study were investigated. Conditional logistic regression was used to calculate OR, adjusting for smoking and socioeconomic status. Results Infections in the gastrointestinal and urogenital tract before clinical onset were associated with a lowered risk of RA: gastroenteritis (OR= 0.71 (95% CI 0.63 to 0.80)), urinary tract infections (OR= 0.78 (95% CI 0.68 to 0.90)) and genital infections (OR= 0.80 (95% CI 0.64 to 1.00)), while a non-significant association of similar magnitude was observed for the less common prostatitis (OR= 0.64 (95% CI 0.38 to 1.08)). In contrast, no associations were observed for sinusitis, tonsillitis or pneumonia. Conclusions Gastrointestinal and urogenital infections, but not respiratory infections, are associated with a significantly lowered risk of RA. The results indicate that infections in general do not affect the risk for RA, but that certain infections, hypothetically associated with changes in the gut microbiome, could diminish the risk.
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