Clinical and immunogenetic characteristics of European multicase rheumatoid arthritis families

Open Access
Publisher Website
Google Scholar
Abstract
OBJECTIVE To describe the characteristics of a new set of European families with affected sib pairs (ASP) collected by the European Consortium on Rheumatoid Arthritis Families (ECRAF) to replicate the results of our first genome scan. Potential gradients for disease severity in Europe and concordance within families were studied. PATIENTS AND METHODS From 1996 to 1998 European white families with at least two affected siblings were enrolled in the study. Demographic (sex, age at onset), clinical data (rheumatoid factor (RF), disease duration, erosive disease, extra-articular features (EF)), and HLA-DRB1 oligotyping were analysed. RESULTS 565 patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), belonging to 271 families including 319 affected sib pairs (ASP) were collected. Belgium, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal, and Spain contributed 20, 96, 52, 24, 9, and 70 families, respectively. Sex (78% women), age at onset (mean 44 years), and RF positivity (79%) were similar among the countries. Differences were found in disease duration (11–18 years) and in the prevalence of erosive disease (70–93%), nodules (15–44%), subjective Sjögren's syndrome (5–38%), and EF (3–16%) (pCONCLUSIONS The differences in RA characteristics between European countries and within families underline the heterogeneity of the disease. No clear cut gradient of disease severity was seen in Europe.