TY - JOUR
T1 - Risk of rheumatoid arthritis diagnosis in statin users in a large nationwide US study
AU - Peterson, Madeline N.
AU - Dykhoff, Hayley J.
AU - Crowson, Cynthia S.
AU - Davis, John M.
AU - Sangaralingham, Lindsey R.
AU - Myasoedova, Elena
N1 - Funding Information:
This work was supported by grants from the National Institutes of Health, National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (R01 AR46849), and National Institutes of Health, National Institute on Aging (R01 AG034676). The content of this manuscript is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health. Dr. Elena Myasoedova is supported by the Career Development Award funded by the Louis V. Gerstner, Jr. Fund at Vanguard Charitable and R01 AG068192.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2021, The Author(s).
PY - 2021/12
Y1 - 2021/12
N2 - Objective: To evaluate the association between statin use and the risk of developing rheumatoid arthritis (RA) in a large, US case-control study. Methods: Using the OptumLabs Data Warehouse, RA cases were identified as patients aged ≥18 years with ≥2 RA diagnoses between January 1, 2010 and June 30, 2019 and ≥1 prescription fills for methotrexate within 1 year of the first RA diagnosis. The first RA diagnosis was the index date. Cases were matched 1:1 to controls on age, sex, region, year of index date, and length of baseline coverage. Statin users were defined by having ≥2 statin prescription fills at least 90 days pre-index. Patients identified as statin users were further classified by statin user status (current or former), statin use duration, and intensity of statin exposure. Odds ratios for RA risk with statin use were estimated using logistic regression. Results: 16,363 RA cases and 16,363 matched controls were identified. Among RA cases, 5509 (33.7%) patients were statin users compared to 5164 (31.6%) of the controls. Statin users had a slightly increased risk of RA compared to non-users (OR 1.12, 95% CI 1.06–1.18), and former statin users had an increased RA risk compared to current users (OR 1.21, 95% CI 1.13–1.28). However, risk was eliminated following adjustment for hyperlipidemia. The risk estimates for statin use duration and intensity did not reach significance. Conclusion: This study demonstrates no significant increase in the risk of developing RA for statin users compared to non-users after adjustment for hyperlipidemia in addition to other relevant confounders. However, more information from prospective studies would be necessary to further understand this relationship.
AB - Objective: To evaluate the association between statin use and the risk of developing rheumatoid arthritis (RA) in a large, US case-control study. Methods: Using the OptumLabs Data Warehouse, RA cases were identified as patients aged ≥18 years with ≥2 RA diagnoses between January 1, 2010 and June 30, 2019 and ≥1 prescription fills for methotrexate within 1 year of the first RA diagnosis. The first RA diagnosis was the index date. Cases were matched 1:1 to controls on age, sex, region, year of index date, and length of baseline coverage. Statin users were defined by having ≥2 statin prescription fills at least 90 days pre-index. Patients identified as statin users were further classified by statin user status (current or former), statin use duration, and intensity of statin exposure. Odds ratios for RA risk with statin use were estimated using logistic regression. Results: 16,363 RA cases and 16,363 matched controls were identified. Among RA cases, 5509 (33.7%) patients were statin users compared to 5164 (31.6%) of the controls. Statin users had a slightly increased risk of RA compared to non-users (OR 1.12, 95% CI 1.06–1.18), and former statin users had an increased RA risk compared to current users (OR 1.21, 95% CI 1.13–1.28). However, risk was eliminated following adjustment for hyperlipidemia. The risk estimates for statin use duration and intensity did not reach significance. Conclusion: This study demonstrates no significant increase in the risk of developing RA for statin users compared to non-users after adjustment for hyperlipidemia in addition to other relevant confounders. However, more information from prospective studies would be necessary to further understand this relationship.
KW - Lipid-lowering medications
KW - Rheumatoid arthritis
KW - Risk factors
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U2 - 10.1186/s13075-021-02617-5
DO - 10.1186/s13075-021-02617-5
M3 - Article
C2 - 34537063
AN - SCOPUS:85115145289
SN - 1478-6354
VL - 23
JO - Arthritis Research and Therapy
JF - Arthritis Research and Therapy
IS - 1
M1 - 244
ER -