Patient characteristics at baseline
| Total cohort (n=873) | No CVD event (n=774) | CVD event (n=99) | p Value (CVD versus no CVD) | |
| Age (years), mean±SD | 54±14 | 53±14 | 62±9 | <0.001 |
| Sex (female), n (%) | 574 (66) | 524 (68) | 50 (51) | 0.001 |
| Currently smoking, n (%) | 272 (31) | 235 (30) | 69 (40) | 0.156 |
| BMI (weight(kg)/height (m²)), mean±SD | 26±4 | 25±4 | 26±4 | 0.016 |
| Systolic blood pressure (mm Hg), mean±SD | 146±24 | 145±24 | 153±24 | 0.002 |
| Diastolic blood pressure (mm Hg), mean±SD | 84±12 | 83±12 | 86±11 | 0.026 |
| Hypertension, n (%) | 120 (14) | 94 (12) | 26 (26) | <0.001 |
| Anti-hypertensives, n (%) | 134 (15) | 110 (14) | 24 (24) | 0.009 |
| TC (mmol/L), mean±SD | 5.2±1.2 | 5.2±1.2 | 5.3±1.4 | 0.448 |
| HDL-c, mean±SD | 1.3±0.3 | 1.3±0.3 | 1.2±0.3 | 0.040 |
| TC:HDL-c ratio, mean±SD | 4.1±1.0 | 4.1±1.0 | 4.4±1.0 | 0.013 |
| LDL-c, mean±SD | 3.2±1.1 | 3.1±1.0 | 3.2±1.2 | 0.357 |
| Lipid lowering agents, n (%) | 30 (3.4) | 23(3) | 7 (7) | 0.035 |
| Diabetes mellitus, n (%) | 37 (4) | 29 (4) | 8 (8) | 0.044 |
| Family history of CVD, n (%) | 265 (30) | 232 (30) | 33 (33) | 0.494 |
| Rheumatoid factor (positivity), n (%) | 654 (75) | 576 (74) | 78 (79) | 0.345 |
| Anti-CCP (positivity), n (%) | 554 (64) | 493 (64) | 61 (62) | 0.686 |
| DAS28, mean±SD | 5.0±1.3 | 4.9±1.3 | 5.4±1.3 | 0.001 |
| CRP, median (IQR) | 14 (2-40) | 13 (2-38) | 21 (3-47) | 0.083 |
| HAQ, median (IQR) | 0.6 (0.3–1.1) | 0.6 (0.3–1.1) | 0.7 (0.3–1.4) | 0.468 |
Hypertension is defined as multiple measurements of elevated systolic blood pressure (>140 mm Hg) during multiple visits by a physician. Diabetes mellitus includes both type 1 and type 2. All variables represent baseline measures, except when otherwise stated.
anti-CCP, anti-cyclic citrullinated peptide; BMI, body mass index; CRP, C-reactive protein; CVD, cardiovascular disease; DAS28, 28-joint disease activity score; HAQ, Health Assessment Questionnaire; HDL-c, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol; LDL-c, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol; TC, total cholesterol.