Rheumatoid arthritis associated-ILD may reduce life expectancy

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) in combination with interstitial lung disease (RA-ILD) may reduce life expectancy despite a downward trend in mortality of RA and RA-ILD over the last 20 years, according to a study.

Researchers utilized data from death certificates over a 20-year span to analyze mortality rate trends and underlying causes of death for patients with RA and RA-ILD.

Age-standardized mortality rates (ASMR) decreased over 20 years among patients with RA or RA-ILD, with decreases also noted for RA and RA-ILD when stratified by gender or age group. The ASMR ratio of RA-ILD to RA trended downwards in women and upwards in men. The ASMR ratio of RA-ILD to RA decreased by 5.84%.

The most frequent underlying causes of death for RA-ILD were arthropathies and ILD; arthropathies and ischaemic heart disease were the most frequent underlying causes of death for RA.

Reference
Gao J, Xin L, Guo Q, et al. Twenty-year changes in mortality rates and underlying causes of death in patients with rheumatoid arthritis-associated interstitial lung disease. Scand J Rheumatol. 2021 Apr 14:1-5. doi: 10.1080/03009742.2021.1882557. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 33851900.