|
Baseline characteristics with comparison between patients with pathological versus normal levels of NT-proBNP |
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| All patients |
NT-proBNP-negativea n = 202 |
NT-proBNP-positivea n = 35 |
P value |
|
|
|
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| Age, years |
51.9 (13.0) |
51.4 (12.9) |
54.3 (13.7) |
0.17 |
| Female gender |
175 (73.5) |
151 (74.8) |
23 (65.7) |
0.26 |
| Disease duration, years |
2.3 (1.2) |
2.2 (1.1) |
2.4 (1.3) |
0.41 |
| RF IgM-positive, ≥ 25 |
114 (47.9) |
97 (48.0) |
16 (45.7) |
0.80 |
| Anti-CCP-positive, ≥ 25 |
144 (60.5) |
125 (61.9) |
18 (51.4) |
0.24 |
| Sharp score |
6.8 (11.8) |
6.8 (12.3) |
6.5 (8.1) |
0.20 |
| C-reactive protein, mg/L |
9.9 (12.7) |
9.2 (11.8) |
13.9 (15.8) |
0.05 |
| DMARD user |
124 (52.1) |
104 (51.5) |
19 (54.3) |
0.76 |
| NSAID user |
109 (45.8 |
92 (45.5) |
17 (48.6) |
0.74 |
| Glucocorticoid user, oral |
65 (27.2) |
51 (25.2) |
14 (40) |
0.07 |
|
Values are presented as mean (standard deviation) for continuous variables and as number (percentage) for counts. aAge- and gender-adjusted reference levels. anti-CCP, anti-cyclic citrullinated peptide antibody; DMARD, disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drug; NSAID, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug; NT-proBNP, N-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide; RF, rheumatoid factor; Sharp score, van der Heijde modified Sharp criteria. | ||||
Provan et al. Arthritis Research & Therapy 2008 10:R70 doi:10.1186/ar2442 |
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