Conventional Synthetic Disease-Modifying Anti-Rheumatic Drugs and the Risk of Vascular Dementia in Patients with Spondyloarthritis: A Database Cohort Study

Yu Hao Lee, Shih Wei Huang, Chih Kuang Chen, Jia Pei Hong, Yi Wen Chen, Hui Wen Lin

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Axial spondyloarthritis (axSpA) is a chronic inflammatory rheumatic disease that mainly affects the axial bones, and dementia is characterized by a decline in cognitive function, leading to dependence in everyday activity. Although the association between dementia and ankylosing spondylitis has been investigated, the influence of axSpA medication on dementia risk is unclear. The aim of this study was to investigate the risk of dementia among axSpA patients and if the conventional synthetic disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (csDMARDs) can reduce the risk of dementia. Patients with axSpA whose data were recorded during 2004–2008 and who were followed up until the end of 2010 were recruited. A control cohort was matched by age and sex. A Cox multivariate proportional hazards model was applied to analyze the risk factors for dementia. The hazard ratio (HR) and adjusted HR (aHR) were estimated between the study and control cohorts. The effects of csDMARDs and steroid use on the risk of different types of dementia were also analyzed. In total, 2341 and 11,705 patients constituted the axSpA and control cohort, respectively. The axSpA cohort had a greater risk of vascular dementia (aHR = 2.09 (1.36–3.20). The risk of dementia (aHR = 1.01 (0.55–1.85) did not significantly differ between patients with axSpA who received csDMARDs. In conclusion, patients with axSpA are at a risk of vascular dementia, which could be reduced by csDMARDs.

Original languageEnglish
Article number950
JournalJournal of Clinical Medicine
Volume12
Issue number3
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Feb 2023

Keywords

  • ankylosing spondylitis
  • axial spondyloarthritis
  • dementia
  • DMARDs
  • population-based study

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • General Medicine

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