Methotrexate and rheumatoid arthritis associated interstitial lung disease.

ABSTRACT:

Question addressed by the study

Methotrexate (MTX) is a key anchor drug for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) management. Fibrotic interstitial lung disease (ILD) is a common complication of RA. Whether MTX exposure increases the risk of ILD in patients with RA is disputed. We aimed to evaluate the association of prior MTX use with development of RA-ILD.

Methods

Through a case-control study design with discovery and international replication samples, we examined the association of MTX exposure with ILD in 410 patients with chronic fibrotic ILD associated with RA (RA-ILD) and 673 patients with RA without ILD. Estimates were pooled over the different samples using meta-analysis techniques.

Results

Analysis of the discovery sample revealed an inverse relationship between MTX exp

SUBMITTER: Juge PA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8212188 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature