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Postmenopause, natural menopause at early age linked to risk for seronegative RA
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Results from a recent study indicated postmenopause and natural menopause at an early age were factors strongly correlated with the risk for seronegative rheumatoid arthritis, but only slightly associated with seropositive RA.
Researchers used data from the Nurses’ Health Studies, which followed 120,700 female nurses aged 30 to 55 years and 116,430 female nurses aged 25 to 42 years who answered biennial questionnaires on lifestyle and disease outcomes. There were 1,096 incident cases of either seropositive RA or seronegative RA identified from the cohort. Cox proportional hazards models were used to collect multivariable-adjusted HRs with 95% CIs of seropositive RA and seronegative RA correlated with menopausal status, age at menopause, menopause type, ovulatory years and use of postmenopausal hormone therapy.
Results showed there was a twofold increased risk for seronegative RA observed in postmenopausal women vs. premenopausal women. Investigators noted there was an increased risk for seronegative RA observed in women who developed natural menopause at an early age. There was no relationship seen between the use of postmenopausal hormone therapy and the risk for seronegative or seropositive RA; however, there was an association seen between the use of postmenopausal hormone therapy for 8 or more years and an increased risk for seropositive RA. – by Monica Jaramillo
Disclosure: Bengtsson reports she received support from the Börje Dahlin fund.
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