Search

Objectives To compare the risk of PsA in psoriasis (PsO) patients treated with acitretin vs DMARDs. Methods This retrospective study used Taiwan's National Health Insurance Research Database from 1997 to 2013. Adult PsO patients without PsA prescribed acitretin or DMARDs for ≥30 days within a year were assigned to the acitretin cohort or DMARDs cohort, respectively. Patients in the acitretin cohort prescribed DMARDs for >7 days, or in the DMARDs cohort prescribed acitretin for >7 days, were excluded. Cumulative incidence of PsA were determined within both cohorts using the Kaplan–Meier method. The hazard ratio (HR) comparing acitretin to DMARDs was calculated with Cox regression models, adjusting for demographic and clinical covariates including the use of NSAIDs and comorbidities. Results The study included 1948 patients in each cohort. The 5-year cumulative incidence of PsA in the acitretin cohort was lower than that in the reference cohort (7.52% vs 9.93%; P  = 0.005), with a more pronounced difference in the subpopulation receiving NSAIDs treatment. However, in subpopulations without NSAIDs treatment, the 5-year cumulative incidence of PsA in the acitretin cohort was comparable to the DMARDs cohort (5.26% vs 6.98%; P  = 0.106). Acitretin was not associated with PsA development in PsO (HR 0.83, 95% confidence interval 0.65–1.05). This risk remained consistent regardless of adjustments for NSAID treatment and comorbidities. Other independent risk factors for PsA included female and NSAIDs treatment. Conclusion Compared with DMARDs, acitretin was not associated with increased PsA risk in PsO patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective Disease activity monitoring in SLE includes serial measurement of anti-double stranded-DNA (dsDNA) antibodies, but in patients who are persistently anti-dsDNA positive, the utility of repeated measurement is unclear. We investigated the usefulness of serial anti-dsDNA testing in predicting flare in SLE patients who are persistently anti-dsDNA positive. Methods Data were analysed from patients in a multinational longitudinal cohort with known anti-dsDNA results from 2013 to 2021. Patients were categorized based on their anti-dsDNA results as persistently negative, fluctuating or persistently positive. Cox regression models were used to examine longitudinal associations of anti-dsDNA results with flare. Results Data from 37 582 visits of 3484 patients were analysed. Of the patients 1029 (29.5%) had persistently positive anti-dsDNA and 1195 (34.3%) had fluctuating results. Anti-dsDNA expressed as a ratio to the normal cut-off was associated with the risk of subsequent flare, including in the persistently positive cohort (adjusted hazard ratio [HR] 1.56; 95% CI: 1.30, 1.87; P  < 0.001) and fluctuating cohort (adjusted HR 1.46; 95% CI: 1.28, 1.66), both for a ratio >3. Both increases and decreases in anti-dsDNA more than 2-fold compared with the previous visit were associated with increased risk of flare in the fluctuating cohort (adjusted HR 1.33; 95% CI: 1.08, 1.65; P  = 0.008) and the persistently positive cohort (adjusted HR 1.36; 95% CI: 1.08, 1.71; P  = 0.009). Conclusion Absolute value and change in anti-dsDNA titres predict flares, including in persistently anti-dsDNA positive patients. This indicates that repeat monitoring of dsDNA has value in routine testing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives Disease flares in the post–coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination period represent a prominent concern, though risk factors are poorly understood. We studied these flares among patients with idiopathic inflammatory myopathies (IIMs) and other autoimmune rheumatic diseases (AIRDs). Methods The COVAD-1 and -2 global surveys were circulated in early 2021 and 2022, respectively, and we captured demographics, comorbidities, AIRDs details, COVID-19 infection history and vaccination details. Flares of IIMs were defined as (a) patient self-reported, (b) immunosuppression (IS) denoted, (c) clinical sign directed and (d) with >7.9-point minimal clinically significant improvement difference worsening of Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) PROMISPF10a score. Risk factors of flares were analysed using regression models. Results Of 15 165 total respondents, 1278 IIMs (age 63 years, 70.3% female, 80.8% Caucasians) and 3453 AIRDs were included. Flares of IIM were seen in 9.6%, 12.7%, 8.7% and 19.6% patients by definitions (a) to (d), respectively, with a median time to flare of 71.5 (10.7–235) days, similar to AIRDs. Patients with active IIMs pre-vaccination (OR 1.2; 95% CI 1.03, 1.6, P  = 0.025) were prone to flares, while those receiving rituximab (OR 0.3; 95% CI 0.1, 0.7, P  = 0.010) and AZA (OR 0.3, 95% CI 0.1, 0.8, P  = 0.016) were at lower risk. Female gender and comorbidities predisposed to flares requiring changes in IS. Asthma (OR 1.62; 95% CI 1.05, 2.50, P  = 0.028) and higher pain visual analogue score (OR 1.19; 95% CI 1.11, 1.27, P  < 0.001) were associated with disparity between self-reported and IS-denoted flares. Conclusion A diagnosis of IIMs confers an equal risk of flares in the post–COVID-19 vaccination period to AIRDs, with active disease, female gender and comorbidities conferring a higher risk. Disparity between patient- and physician-reported outcomes represents a future avenue for exploration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents a study which analysed predictors in a global sample of patients with idiopathic inflammatory myopathies (IIMs) using data from the second COVID-19 Vaccination in Autoimmune Diseases (COVAD) study. Topics include patients included in the study, patient-reported flares following COVID-19 infection among IIM patients, and factors that were found to significantly increase the risk of flares in univariate analysis.

Breast cancer is the most common neoplasm in the world among women. The age-specific incidences and onset ages vary widely between Asian and Western countries/regions. Invasive breast cancer cases among women from 1997 to 2011 were abstracted from the International Agency for Research on Cancer and the Taiwan Cancer Registry. Age-period-cohort analysis was performed to examine the trends. The cohort effect was prominent in South Korea, Taiwan, Japan, and Thailand, possibly related to the timing of westernization. The risk of breast cancer initially rose with the birth cohorts in Hong Kong and India (both former British colonies), peaked, and then declined in recent birth cohorts. Unlike other Asian countries/regions, virtually no birth cohort effect was identified in the Philippines (a Spanish colony in 1565 and the first Asian country to adopt Western cultural aspects). Moreover, an at-most negligible birth cohort effect was identified for all ethnic groups (including Asian immigrants) in the United States. This global study identified birth cohort effects in most Asian countries/regions but virtually no impact in Western countries/regions. The timing of westernization was associated with the birth cohort effect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]