SAN FRANCISCO – Obese patients with rheumatoid arthritis are significantly less likely to achieve sustained disease remission than are their peers who are normal weight or overweight, based on data reported at the annual meeting of the American College of Rheumatology.
In an analysis of more than 1,000 patients with RA from the multicenter, prospective CATCH (Canadian Early Arthritis Cohort) study, about 28% of obese (body mass index of 30 kg/m2 or greater) patients achieved sustained remission, defined as a 28-joint Disease Activity Score of 2.6 or less at two consecutive clinical visits.
In contrast, 38% of overweight (BMI 25-29.9) and 48% of normal-weight (BMI 18.5-24.9) patients reached that goal, said Dr. Vivian P. Bykerk, director of the Inflammatory Arthritis Center of Excellence at the Hospital for Special Surgery, New York, and a clinical researcher at Weill Cornell Medical College, New York. In an exclusive video interview, Dr. Bykerk discusses the findings and their implications.
Dr. Bykerk is the founder and principal investigator for the CATCH study, which is sponsored by Amgen, Pfizer, Hoffmann-La Roche, UCB Canada, Bristol-Myers Squibb, AbbVie, and Janssen Biotech.