title: In patients with early inflammatory polyarthritis, ACPA positivity, younger age and inefficacy of the first non-biological DMARD are predictors for receiving biological therapy: results from the Norfolk Arthritis Register.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To identify baseline disease-related predictors in patients with early inflammatory polyarthritis (IP) for starting subsequent biological therapy and to determine if patients who failed their first non-biological disease-modifying antirheumatic drug (DMARD) within 6 months were more likely to need biological therapy.
  
  
  METHODS
  Patients with early IP recruited between 1990 and 1994 (cohort 1) and between 2000 and 2004 (cohort 2) in the Norfolk Arthritis Register were included in this study. The association between possible predictors with the start of biological therapy was assessed using Cox proportional hazards regression models.
  
  
  RESULTS
  32/407 (7.9%) patients in cohort 1 and 45/416 (10.8%) patients in cohort 2 received biological therapy during follow-up. In both cohorts, anti-citrullinated protein antibody (ACPA) positivity (cohort 1, HR 7.62, 95% CI 2.46 to 23.58; cohort 2, HR 4.68, 95% CI 2.23 to 9.78) was the strongest predictor for starting biological therapy. In cohort 2, younger patients (HR 0.97, 95% CI 0.95 to 0.99) and patients who failed their first non-biological DMARD within 6 months due to inefficacy were also more likely to receive biological therapy (HR 2.35, 95% CI 1.05 to 5.27).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Patients with early IP who are ACPA positive, are younger or who fail their first non-biological DMARD due to inefficacy within 6 months are more likely to need biological therapy.
authors.affiliation: Arthritis Research UK Epidemiology Unit, Manchester Academic Health Sciences Centre, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK.
authors.forename: Suzanne M M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Verstappen
authors.forename: Mark
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Lunt
authors.forename: Diane K
authors.initials: DK
authors.lastname: Bunn
authors.forename: David G I
authors.initials: DG
authors.lastname: Scott
authors.forename: Deborah P M
authors.initials: DP
authors.lastname: Symmons
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D018501:Antirheumatic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D001172:Arthritis, Rheumatoid / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000276:immunology; D001323:Autoantibodies / Q000097:blood*; D001688:Biological Products / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood; D018450:Disease Progression; D004812:Epidemiologic Methods; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010456:Peptides, Cyclic / Q000276:immunology*; D011379:Prognosis; D012907:Smoking / Q000009:adverse effects; D017211:Treatment Failure; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors
chemical_list: D018501:Antirheumatic Agents; D001323:Autoantibodies; D001688:Biological Products; D015415:Biomarkers; D010456:Peptides, Cyclic; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha; C487763:cyclic citrullinated peptide