Clinicodemographic Profiles of Rheumatoid Arthritis Patients from a Single Center in Saudi Arabia

Abstract

Purpose

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA), if left untreated, can lead to joint damage and deformity, disability, and even death. Hence, early diagnosis and management are essential to improve clinical and functional outcomes. This study aimed to identify the most common variables and risk factors related to RA activity among patients living in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA).

Patients and Methods

This study was conducted between January 2018 and March 2019 on consecutive patients diagnosed with RA at a tertiary care hospital in KSA. Adult patients (≥18 years old) diagnosed with RA based on the American College of Rheumatology 2010 criteria were recruited. The Disease Activity Score-28 for Rheumatoid Arthritis with CRP (DAS28-CRP) and health assessment questionnaire disability index (HAQ-DI) were calculated for 75 patients attending the rheumatology clinic during the study period to evaluate the rate of remission and functional capacity, and to compare findings with other local studies after assessing the relationship of these factors with medication use and existing comorbidities.

Results

The majority of the 75 patients were female (n=64), with a mean age of 49.7 years and average disease duration of 130 days. The median HAQ-DI was less than 0.5 (range 0–1.95). The DAS28-CRP scores revealed moderate disease activity in 45.3% and low disease or remission in 38.6% of the patients. Many patients (45.3%) were treated with methotrexate, and the most commonly used biological treatment was adalimumab in 14.6%. Comorbidities included hypertension (26.7%) and diabetes mellitus (18.7%). There was a strong association between cardiovascular diseases and a high DAS28-CRP score (p < 0.001).

Conclusion

A higher RA activity rate was observed. This may be related to difficultly accessing rheumatology clinics in our facility and financial difficulties accessing biological treatments.

Keywords:

• rheumatoid arthritis
• DMARD
• comorbid conditions
• DAS28-CRP
• biologics
• HAQ-DI

Acknowledgments

I would like to thank Editage (www.editage.com) for English language editing.

Abbreviations

RA, rheumatoid arthritis; KSA, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia; DAS28-CRP, Disease Activity Score-28 for Rheumatoid Arthritis with CRP; EULAR, European League Against Rheumatism; ESR, erythrocyte sedimentation rate; MTX, methotrexate; HTN, hypertension; DM, diabetes mellitus; CVD, cardiovascular disease; CRP, C-reactive protein; ANOVA, Analysis of variance; TJC, tender joint count; SJC, swollen joint count; NSAIDs, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug; csDMARDs, conventional disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs; TNFα, tumor necrosis factor alpha.

Data Sharing Statement

The data is confined to this research, it will not be available in any links or public archived database.

Ethics Approval and Informed Consent

This study received ethical approval from the ethics committee of King Abdulaziz University (Reference No. 531-19), and written informed consent was obtained from all patients included in the study, and it complied with the Declaration of Helsinki.

Consent for Publication

Written informed consent was obtained from all patients included in the study.

Disclosure

The author indicates no conflicts of interest.

Additional information

Funding

The author did not receive any financial support for this work. There is no financial relationship with any organization supporting this work.